Taken
by Spunky0ne
Summary: When Byakuya's cousin is abducted by the quincies, the soul king sends his samurai to rescue him. But, who is the real enemy and who is an ally? Who is it that the shinigamis really should be protecting?...yaoi, some non-graphic non-con...Pairings are Renji/Byakuya, Katsuro/Tetsuya, Ichigo/Uryu and Aizen/Urahara
1. Firestorm

**Taken**

**By Spunky0ne**

**XXXXXXXXXX**

**(Thanks going out to Saki12345, who convinced me to post this rewrite I've been working on. I'm responding to suggestions to add more Ren/Bya, and I am also adding Ichigo/Uryu and some Aizen/Urahara…Warnings for As Nodt/Tetsuya, Bambi/Tetsuya and Ywach/Tetsuya non-graphic non-con, teasing, rape. Also includes nightmares of As Nodt/Byakuya. Pairings are Renji/Byakuya, Katsuro (Renji's father)/Tetsuya, Ichigo/Uryu and Aizen/Urahara.)**

**XXXXXXXXXX**

**Chapter 1: Firestorm**

Solemn blue eyes watched worriedly as the sky over the Seireitei darkened and Kuchiki Tetsuya felt a cold shiver run down his spine, settling in the pit of his stomach and swirling there. In the distance, pillars of blue-white light began to appear, and it wasn't long before distant sounding screams began to reach him. He reacted immediately to the sights and sounds, setting off the house alarms and sending the staff of Kuchiki Manor and the nearby Kuchiki subfamilies into motion.

Almost immediately, people began to stream out of the buildings, their faces set and grim, but still managing to maintain calm. Each person carried a survival pack over one shoulder, and everyone, down to the smallest child knew to move swiftly and silently along the prepared path.

Flash steps sounded around Tetsuya and two attendants appeared, followed by another Kuchiki cousin dressed in black and possessing even blacker eyes. But where that man's presence near Tetsuya would once have caused both men to stiffen and become wary, faced with the dreaded approach of an enemy aimed at their throats, the two forgot for the moment their longtime differences and took defensive positions together.

"Tetsuya-san," the elder attendant said in a calm, but slightly shaken tone, "the way has been opened. All subfamilies have responded and begun their evacuation."

"Thank you, Torio," Tetsuya answered, nodding briefly, "Koji, did you make contact with my father?"

"Yes, Tetsuya-san," the younger attendant replied, "Sadao reported that his subfamily and your mother and elder sister are being evacuated now. Your younger sister was recalled to her fighting unit and has reached the gathering point safely."

"Very well. Orochi, what word did you receive from the Noble's General Council?"

There was a moment of silence, then Kuchiki Orochi's answer rose darkly against the approaching sounds of battle.

"The communication line opened for a moment," the black-eyed man reported, "but then it was cut off. Almost immediately, we received signs of multiple deaths occurring in that place...meaning..."

"The council hall took a direct hit," Tetsuya whispered disbelievingly, "There wasn't even time for the councilors there to evacuate."

"It is clear," Orochi went on, "This isn't just a war aimed at the Gotei 13. This enemy is also taking aim on the noble families directly. Several of the enemy pillars of light were strategically placed near our homes. And I think you'll agree with me that the strike on the council hall was no coincidence. They were going for the throat, as it were. They expected that taking out as many of our leaders like that as they could would leave the noble families in disarray. And Tetsuya, you are aware that some of the other families were skeptical when Byakuya went before the council and warned them they needed to take precautions and prepare for mass evacuations."

Tetsuya nodded briefly in acknowledgment.

"There are going to be a lot of needless deaths today," he breathed unhappily.

"We should go," Orochi urged him, "before we find ourselves among them."

The four left the hilltop from which they had been watching and proceeded almost silently along the hidden pathway, leaving behind them a scattering of mixed signs to confuse any pursuing soldiers. The sounds of distant screams and rumbles of heavy impacts sent shards of distress through the four as they closed in on the crossover point into the protected area. They had almost reached it when all four suddenly stiffened and each touched a reactive hand to his heart. Their faces paled and their eyes darkened and rounded as the strong pulse of Kuchiki Byakuya's powerful reiatsu flared up almost blindingly, then crashed down and began almost immediately to fade.

"Byakuya-sama!" screamed Tetsuya, starting to flash step, but stopped as Orochi's hand wrapped around one slender wrist.

"Tetsuya, no!" Orochi hissed, "We have to get to the evacuation area. Those were his orders. You know that!"

"Let go of me!" Tetsuya cried, throwing his cousin's hand off and disappearing before he could object again.

"Tetsuya-san!" the attendants called after him, starting to follow.

"Stop!" Orochi commanded them, freezing the two in place, "Let him go. Our job is to protect the subfamilies. We cannot leave them unprotected!"

"But Tetsuya-san!" the younger attendant objected.

"He will be all right," Orochi said, inwardly not nearly so convinced that he would, "In any case, he is our leader's bodyguard. He will confirm what we all just felt. Then, he will return to us. Come now, we have to lay the final seal around the refuge."

The two attendants looked as though they wanted to object, but they followed as their elder cousin led them away into the forest.

In the distance, Tetsuya flash stepped at blinding speed, his mind focused on reaching the Kuchiki clan leader. As he ran, some of the panic left his veins and he regained enough cognizance to mask his presence by invoking his shikai. Slowly, his body faded into translucence, making him nearly invisible and allowing him to bypass the thickening lines of enemy soldiers now marching on the Seireitei military points and the noble homes.

_Kami_, the young man mused dazedly, _this enemy knew exactly how to strike us. Even as prepared as we were for trouble, I don't think we imagined it would be like this. How did they invade so swiftly? They are all around us now_.

His heart thudded painfully in his chest as the facts of the situation converged on his besieged mind.

_There is nothing we will be able to do. The Seireitei is going to fall!_

The thought nearly unhinged him, but accepting inwardly that the situation was devastating, he refocused on the one thing left that mattered most to him.

"Byakuya-sama," he whispered, "I am coming for you!"

He was forced to slow somewhat as the rural land gave way to the beginning of the central Seireitei, and Tetsuya's breath caught at the horrifying sight of tumbled buildings, raging fires, and clusters of shinigamis engaging an overwhelming number of quincy foot soldiers. He swallowed hard, knowing how little chance they stood of surviving, but he knew that if he paused to make an attack, himself, he would be sensed and intercepted by quincy elite fighters before he could reach his fallen cousin's side. As it was, he had to skirt the edges of the battlefield to avoid several powerful reiatsus that marked enemies strong enough to delay him.

Tetsuya angled around them carefully, honing in on Byakuya's dangerously weakened reiatsu and using the shattered remains of the structures around him for cover. He closed in on Byakuya's position, feeling a chill run down his spine as Abarai Renji's agonized howl reached him.

"Taicho!" he screamed.

Tetsuya heard the clashing of arms and caught sight of the fighters ahead of him. Byakuya was barely visible and surrounded in a sea of his own swirling petals as Renji's mind broke in desperation.

"An animal like you isn't worthy of using Senbonzakura!" he screamed, "S-stop! Sto-o-op! Ban...!"

Renji's voice stopped suddenly as a dark form exploded from nowhere, smashing into the stunned redhead and sending him crashing through what buildings were left standing, then he disappeared entirely into the cloud of dust that kicked up around the path his body had taken.

Byakuya's body was driven back against a barely standing pillar and plunged deeply into it, making an explosion of fire, blood and wildly spinning petals all around as Tetsuya forgot caution and flash stepped towards his cousin.

"Byakuya-sama!" he sobbed, oblivious to the danger around him as he reached the trapped noble and watched his sword shatter.

Byakuya lost consciousness before registering his cousin's presence and Tetsuya moved towards him, calling his name again more softly as the dust around them cleared and he could see clearly the clan leader's horrid injuries. He reached out a hand and touched Byakuya's bloodied face gently. The clan leader's eyelids moved sluggishly as he tried to respond, but all he could manage was to catch a glimpse of Tetsuya's devastated expression and a flash of his dark blue house guard's uniform, before succumbing to darkness again.

"I'll get you out of here," Tetsuya whispered, starting to step forward.

He froze a moment later, terror numbing his mind as an arm curled around him from behind and a cold hand covered his mouth.

"How very careless of you, not even waiting until we were gone to reveal yourself," his enemy said reprovingly, "I assure you, young noble, you are about to pay dearly for your recklessness!"

The one holding him screamed in pain and fury as Tetsuya's teeth sank into his hand and the noble pulled free of him, starting to draw his sword. But as the scream ended, the white clad man began to laugh, and Tetsuya felt his body freeze in place.

"Foolish, foolish shinigami!" the quincy chided him, "I give you credit for your resourcefulness, of course, but drawing my blood was a poor decision. You feel it, don't you? You see, my power is not only present in my thorns, it permeates my body and it fills my blood. By drawing my blood and letting it touch you, you have poisoned yourself with my fear."

Tetsuya struggled to release his shikai, but found his mind overtaken with stark, horrifying images that raked him repeatedly, burning down inside him until he couldn't bear the intensity. Memories of imprisonment he had suffered as a child returned to him and battered his heart relentlessly, while the scene of Byakuya's defeat at the quincy's foul hands played out repeatedly until Tetsuya collapsed onto his knees, loosing peals of terrified shrieks and covering his tearstained face in desperation.

"You can't escape it that way," the quincy said, approaching him slowly, "And I do regret that you appear to have been strong enough to survive that direct exposure to my blood. Most would have died, even before the worst of the fear could strike them. You were his protector, then, ne?"

Tetsuya quivered under his touch as As Nodt wrapped an arm around him and dragged him to his feet again.

"A powerful noble close to the dead clan leader," the quincy mused, "You could be useful later on. Or at least, you could amuse me for a while before I kill you."

He sent a powerful jolt of reiatsu through his hands and into Tetsuya's shuddering form and the noble went limp in his arms. As Nodt lifted Tetsuya and turned back to the others who had joined him.

"What are you going to do with him?" Mask de Masculine asked, scratching his head and studying the unconscious shinigami, "Why didn't you just kill him?"

"He's not a leader," As Nodt explained, "but he is close to one and will have information we will need to track down and destroy the noble families. You heard that most of the families had already fled their homes before we arrived, ne?"

"Yeah, but...?"

"_Someone_ has to know where all of those bastards went and hid themselves. His majesty wants the noble families destroyed. He will be pleased when we are the ones who accomplish that for him."

"Ah, I see. Are you gonna take him to the cellblock then, for torture?"

As Nodt looked down at Tetsuya's tormented, but still comely face and shook his head.

"I will put him in my quarters. I don't want anyone stealing him and extracting the information before I do!"

"Huh, I guess that makes sense."

Mask looked around, then glanced back at his slim companion.

"Well, I'm gonna go and hunt some more shinigamis."

"You do that, simpleton," As Nodt muttered, using his hirenkyaku to take him swiftly back to the crossover point between the Seireitei and the shadow realm the quincies had emerged from.

He carried his unconscious hostage back to the palace and laid Tetsuya in his own bed, blindfolding, gagging and carefully restraining him. Then he laid a bright white barrier around the noble and stepped back, nodding approvingly.

"You should be safe here for now," he said, smirking, "I would begin interrogating you right away, but I sense our leader is about to meet theirs. Farewell, young Kuchiki. I will return to you soon."

XXXXXXXXXX

Orochi moved swiftly to meet the two attendants who approached, his black eyes intense as he regarded them.

"What is the news from the Noble's General Council Hall?" he asked sternly.

"Th-there were many deaths there," reported a white-faced Torio, working to catch his breath, "More than half of the councilors were lost in the initial explosion, when the quincy pillar came down and impacted the building directly."

"Damn it..."

"Head Elder Nori has returned, "Torio went on, "along with a few injured councilors he was able to rescue."

"And what of our clan leader?" Orochi asked an equally distressed looking Koji, "Byakuya-sama fell in battle, and I could not reach him because of enemies moving in the area," Koji reported, "I did hear that the shinigami substitute, Kurosaki Ichigo is coming. But...there is something else."

"What?" Orochi demanded, "Well?"

"It is Tetsuya-san, sir," Koji said, tears leaking onto his face.

"What about him?" Orochi asked darkly, "What happened to him?"

"He reached Byakuya-sama, but..."

Koji paused, a devastated sob escaping him.

"But what, you fool!" Orochi demanded, "What happened?"

"He was c-captured!" Koji sobbed, crumbling to his knees at his cousin's feet, "The one that defeated Byakuya-sama injured Tetsuya-san, then knocked him unconscious and took him as a hostage!"

Torio knelt next to his distraught brother, slipping an arm around him and guiding him away, leaving Orochi standing and looking out through the barrier at the burning Seireitei.

"You unbelievable fool," he said softly, a hint of regret in his eyes, "I told you that your devotion to that peasant loving leader of ours would only get you killed. But this is worse than death, isn't it, Tetsuya? For you, capture means you would be better off if they had just killed you."

XXXXXXXXXX

_He gave me no answer, _Byakuya thought numbly, gazing in the direction that Ichigo had gone,_ but it is all right. That is just how he is. Even if you don't answer, I know..._

_I leave it to you, Kurosaki Ichigo._

The words, even spoken only in his mind were like the release of a great weight. He wondered as the last of his strength seeped away and his legs began to collapse how long he had carried that weight. The question started in the back of his mind, then blossomed and grew larger and louder as he slid to the ground and heard the warning crack of Senbonzakura's hilt as it shattered.

_Yes, _whispered a darker voice in the back of his mind, _fear is a weight you have carried for too long._

Byakuya could register just enough feeling to know that he had fallen to the ground and that rain was coming down, adding to the weight of his blood-soaked haori and running along the tumbled strands of blood spattered raven hair. His skin stung as the water ran in rivulets along his exposed skin, teasing cuts that numbered so many that he wondered that he was still in one piece.

_So many hurts on my body, _he mused.

_Now it matches your heart, ne? _that darker voice hissed.

_Who are you? _Byakuya wondered, his mind spinning as he tried to remain conscious.

But the cold around him, the touches of rain, even the hurts from his battle were seeping away with his blood. And it wasn't just his body that felt empty. His heart was a drained and useless chamber that had lost its beat.

_I really am dying, _he mused silently.

_Undone by fear and now dying lonely, _whispered that other voice, _What a sad fate, Byakuya. But, even though you are going to die, I promise you, you will not be alone. I am still in possession of a part of your soul._

A feeling like ice passed through the fallen shinigami's core.

_As Nodt? Even now? But...I suppose that makes sense. I felt his reiatsu enter my body. It found its way into my heart and emptied it of everything else. A last cruelty to spend my final moments being tormented by the one who finally killed me?_

He thought he heard voices around him and registered his body being carefully lifted. He might have made a sound of pain as the arriving healers moved him, but then something stung his skin and he sank down into a more comfortable darkness. He could tell that his body was inhaling and exhaling, but he knew that the state he was in was precarious and that it was unlikely he would survive. And as he continued to float in and out of awareness, he heard a male voice confirm his fears.

_You can't heal him. You can't, so I will._

He drifted out again, his only awareness an impression of icy hands clasping him and holding him against a body that held no warmth. Then, his injured and dying body splashed down into hot water, and he wondered if he had only imagined those icy cold hands. But then an equally icy voice sounded in defiance.

_I am not letting you go. You are mine now. _


	2. Inner Terror

**Chapter 2: Inner Terror**

_Come..._

Those cold hands touched Byakuya again, pulling at him, dragging him down deeper into the abyss that wanted to claim him. He was breathing in the warm water he laid in now, and he was aware of the others around him.

_Ichigo._

_Rukia._

_Renji._

His heart strengthened, feeling that they were close to him and still alive. But, feeling his will begin to assert itself, that darkness inside him yanked down on him again, pulling him inward and shutting away his awareness of those other souls.

There was only one soul close to his now.

_As Nodt..._

_"Open your eyes," the dark voice said more clearly._

_Byakuya's eyes opened into bare slits and he gave a gasp at finding himself lying in As Nodt's arms._

_"This is not real," he whispered, his bleeding lips barely moving, "You are not real."_

_"I am not real, you say?" As Nodt asked softly, caressing the cuts on Byakuya's still comely face, "Where did you get that idea, Kuchiki Byakuya? Did you not feel me pull your soul away from them? I stole your Senbonzakura...and that means that I stole what is closest to your heart. A shinigami's power is, at the core, a reflection of one's heart that longs to protect something...or someone. When I stole Senbonzakura, your heart became one with mine."_

_"You have no heart!"_

_"Is that what you think?" As Nodt asked, looking down into the noble's widened eyes, "You call me 'evil,' and you vilify me, but although you deny I have a heart, you feel it, don't you? It is wrapped tightly around you and holds you away from them. In the end, you will die and all you are will belong to me...until I too die and all is given to the master, Ywach."_

_Byakuya started to object, but As Nodt's icy fingers stopped his lips._

_"But enough about that. We have some time together now, while they struggle to save you. I am not displeased. It would have been too fast, had you just died when I struck you down. This way, we can ease each others' loneliness for a bit, ne?"_

_Byakuya looked up into As Nodt's large, black eyes and felt as though he was falling into a pitch black sea. Those empty eyes betrayed a smile that was hidden beneath the armored mask on the quincy's face._

_"I did not know a monster like you experienced loneliness," Byakuya whispered, helpless to move as the quincy caressed the drying cuts on his face._

_"Of course I am lonely," As Nodt confessed, "My power is fear. And people do not want to face fear, not even if it makes them grow stronger. And even if not for that, what is concealed beneath this mask would make anyone's blood turn to ice."_

_"You are...disfigured?" Byakuya asked._

_"Yes. Horribly so. Would you like to see?"_

_Byakuya stared up at the quincy, unable to answer._

_Not waiting for a response, the quincy raised a clawed hand and slowly removed the mask, revealing a face that once might have been as lovely as his, but had been unmercifully scarred and pitted. But as much as the sight was horrible and as much as it made him want to turn away, Byakuya only looked up at his captor with calm eyes, then started to reach a hand up to touch the other man's face._

_Then he remembered that arm was missing its hand..._

_He heard As Nodt snicker._

_"You and I are much more alike than you know," the quincy whispered into his ear, "We used to be beautiful, but we were hated and we were cut and burned until we looked like this!"_

_Byakuya caught his breath softly._

_"Someone did this to you?" he asked, "Why?"_

_As Nodt's ruined lips smiled._

_"Fear," he said in a low, malevolent voice._

_He laid down alongside Byakuya's frozen body, opening their clothing._

_"Even before I looked like this, people feared me," As Nodt explained, "Some looked at me and feared that I looked different or dangerous. Some worried that I would deceive them. Some worried I would hurt them or steal something that meant very much to them. So...no one came near...save one."_

_As Nodt bent close over the noble's body, breathing in the coppery scent of his spilled blood. He ran his tongue slowly along the length of Byakuya's pale throat, savoring the area and smiling more widely._

_"He was beautiful, like me and he didn't seem like the others. He had a kind heart and he approached me and offered his friendship. We became inseparable and in time, we fell in love."_

_Byakuya quivered as the quincy's hands lazily explored him._

_"What happened?" he asked, as much to find an opening to escape as to know._

_But As Nodt seemed caught up in the telling of his tale and seemed not to notice._

_"The others feared that I would hurt him," the quincy went on, his marred body becoming aroused as he touched and caressed his immobile captive, "They planned to take him away. They broke into our home in the dead of night, coming from out of the shadows and tearing him away from me. And to be sure I did not follow, one of them impaled me through the heart, leaving me on our bed, bleeding to death as they dragged my lover away."_

_"That sounds horrid," Byakuya said solemnly, feeling just the slightest bit of his ability to move returning._

_"I laid there bleeding," the quincy went on, "and as I was dying, I smelled smoke and realized they had set the house ablaze. I believed myself lost, and so it seemed that I was. The fire burned me and my blood ran out. I felt cold inside and I stopped breathing."_

_"Kami!" Byakuya gasped, despite himself, "How did you survive?"_

_As Nodt gave him a chilling smile._

_"His majesty, Ywach, appeared out of the flames. He picked up my defiled body and carried me to his palace, where he healed me and promised to give me a power that would stop anyone from taking away what is mine again."_

_"Fear," Byakuya whispered, shivering as the quincy's fingers traced his lips, then his deformed lips followed._

_"Yessssss," As Nodt hissed softly, kissing, then licking the noble's lips, "I became the monster they had feared so much that they had attacked someone weaker than them, who never hurt anyone. And now, what I make my own, no one can take away."_

_He paused, then slid a hand down Byakuya's tattered body and sought his nether region._

_"No!" Byakuya gasped, struggling weakly, "Don't...don't touch me!"_

_As Nodt's wicked laughter sent chills running up and down Byakuya's spine._

_"You belong to me, Kuchiki Byakuya!" the quincy exclaimed, holding down one slender wrist and trapping the remains of his other arm, "I made you mine through fear! And what I make mine, no one can take away from me! Let them come! Let them try! All of them are not enough to pry you away from me!_

_"N-no!" Byakuya cried more loudly, "No! Let go! Let go of me!"_

_He screamed as clawed fingers dug into his skin, his mind spinning as he desperately sought a means of escape. As Nodt's powerful body trapped his and the quincy glared down at him as he prepared to make their bodies one._

_Wait! Byakuya thought to himself suddenly, What did he say before? He said that all of them weren't enough..._

_He ignored the body that had trapped his, the foul breath that touched his skin, the pain as time ran out and the quincy positioned himself._

_"Ichigo," Byakuya whispered, too softly for As Nodt to hear, "Rukia...Renji!"_

Byakuya felt strange flickers of warmth around his freezing form, a warmth that touched his skin and seeped inside, melting the ice that had formed there. He felt his body being launched through the air, then splashing down into something thick and hot and bubbling. New strength filled him and he pushed the quincy's touch and voice away. He heard another male voice then, telling him to fight harder if he wanted any damned chance of living.

As Nodt's voice returned in a huge, vicious swell, drowning out the other man's voice as Byakuya's body was dragged from the second hot pool and thrown back down into the first. He felt again, the sensation that everything was being sucked out of his body and he felt the urge to fight it. But there was something in the warmth of the water around him, in the other presences that still registered, even as As Nodt tore at his mind, trying to pull him away again.

_"All of them aren't enough to take you away from me!" As Nodt shrieked, "You are mine, Kuchiki Byakuya! You are MINE!"_

_As Nodt's icy, clawed hand gripped his tightly, dragging him down into the blackness again._

_"ICHIGO! RUKIA! RENJI!" Byakuya screamed, reaching out with what was left of his free arm._

He realized very suddenly that something was different. A rough, calloused hand had reached out and captured the one of his that he was sure that he had lost in the battle. He cracked his eyes opened very slightly, and he could see that he laid in a hot spring. Submerged under the water, he saw his healing body suspended, and hovering close, a handsome and naked, tattooed male body surrounded by swirls of lovely, crimson hair.

"Renji!" he mouthed, moving his newly restored fingers.

He held to that strong hand as As Nodt's voice rose up in his mind, screeching with hatred and fury at having been denied his prize. His claws tried to dig in and yank the noble away, but Renji's hand held on more firmly, refusing to let go. And as the warm, healing water sucked away the last of the reiatsu that the wicked quincy had used to corrupt his body, Byakuya squeezed the redhead's hand, and his lips smiled gratefully.

He lapsed into a deep, restorative sleep as the healing continued, his mind quiet and restful for the first time since his injury at the hands of the quincy, As Nodt.

**XXXXXXXXXX**

"Bambi-chan, we shouldn't be doing this, ne? Sneaking into As Nodt's quarters? He could come back."

"Shut up," Bambietta said crossly, slipping inside and looking around carefully, then holding the door for her companions, "I wanna see him...the shinigami that As caught."

"He's going to kill us all if he finds us in here!"

"I told you to shut up, Gigi!" Bambietta snapped, moving towards the bed, where a young man laid, heavily bound, gagged and blindfolded on As Nodt's bed, "He's still being healed. He's not coming back for a while. And before he does, we're going to have some fun with this guy!"

"If you think he'd be pissed over us _looking_ at the guy, he'll absolutely destroy us if we have your kind of fun with him."

"So get the hell outta here if you're so scared. You know what? All of you get the fuck out! Just watch the door."

"No way!" Candice said, eyeing the restrained man on the bed, "I'm not missing out on this."

"Just don't leave a mess behind if you do decide to kill him when you're done with him," Liltotto insisted, "We don't want him knowing it was us."

"Yeah, whatever," Bambi sighed dismissively, moving to the bound man's side.

She glared down at Tetsuya, studying his comely profile, dark hair and soft-looking, pale skin.

"So, what's your story?" she said mockingly, nudging him and finding his body limp and unresponsive, "I think it's time for you to wake up."

"Seems like he's pretty much out of it," Candice said, studying the limiter on the young man's wrist, "You can see As filled him with fear."

"He's shaking," Lil noted, looking under the lid of one closed eye, then the other, "As Nodt left him in cycles of nightmares."

"Probably to beat him down while he was out cold," Gigi agreed, "He's a real creep. The shinigamis think we're evil for coming in and killing them, but they've got no idea how wicked the freaks like that guy are. Maybe we should just do him in now, you know, like a mercy killing."

"He's a shinigami," Bambi said dismissively, "He doesn't deserve any mercy. You haven't forgotten, they fucking murdered our kind! They tried to kill us all. That only mercy they deserve is to die painfully at our feet!"

"Or between her legs, the little slut," Candice murmured into Lil's ear, making the younger girl giggle, "Maybe you should go out and watch the door, Lil. We don't really want to get caught in here, plus, you know you don't like what she does to'em when she's finished."

"Yeah, I'll wait outside," Liltotto said, skipping away.

Gigi and Candice continued to watch closely as Bambi's hands touched Tetsuya and she jolted him with a quick, disruptive burst of reiatsu. The reiatsu that As Nodt had left curled around him to torment him shattered and the noble came awake suddenly. He made a muffled sound of distress and began to struggle against his bonds. Bambi removed the young man's blindfold and Tetsuya's widened sapphire eyes fixed on them.

"Whoa! He's pretty for a guy," Gigi said appreciatively, touching Tetsuya's face and sending a warning shiver through him, "You were awfully unlucky to be grabbed by a bastard like As Nodt. He's going to kill you painfully, you know."

A sliver of torment touched the shinigami's eyes for a moment, then his dark eyes took on a fixed look of acceptance.

"What's the matter?" Bambi asked, "You know you're screwed? Cause you are...really screwed, shinigami. You're going to die. It's going to be a relief for you to die after what he'll do to you. Maybe we should be merciful and do you in now."

Tetsuya looked back at her, his eyes oddly calm, despite her words.

"What's this? Not afraid?" Bambi asked, leaning over him and, "You've got serious balls, if you're really not afraid, shinigami. But...let's look to be sure."

Tetsuya couldn't help quivering as the young woman's hands opened his yukata, baring him. The three women gazed down at his lovely, revealed body, smiling wickedly.

"He _does_ have serious balls!" Gigi said appreciatively, "And that has to be the prettiest _guy thing_ I've ever seen. I think it's blushing!"

Despite the harsh cadence of his heart, Tetsuya forced his face to remain calm as the three stared down at him even more intently and Bambi's hand reached down to touch his nether region.

"Come on, shinigami," she said, her face glowing softly with cruelty, "Let's see that thing wake up, okay?"

Despite the terror that flooded him, Tetsuya held himself perfectly still and closed his eyes, taking his mind back to his captivity in the secret noble's prison.

_They were cruel. They humiliated us...beat us...raped us...even killed us, but we did not give in to them. Yes, they could harm our bodies, but they could not touch our hearts. We knew how wicked they could be, and that we could not stop them. So, we learned to shut ourselves away...to..._

"I don't think he's all there," Candice observed, watching as Bambi worked to bring the shinigami into a state of arousal, "Or maybe he doesn't like girls."

"You think he's gay?" asked Gigi, reaching for Tetsuya's gag and pulling it free, "Is that it, then? You're gay? You don't like women?"

Tetsuya looked back at them wordlessly.

"Well?" Bambi said, clenching her hand and making him wince and suck in a gasping breath, "She asked you a question, shinigami. You going to answer her? Or should I just deprive you of these right now? They seem pretty useless anyway."

"I will commit no act of violence against a woman," Tetsuya said quietly, "I have never touched a woman, either to harm one, nor to take one sexually."

"But you've killed men, ne?" Bambi queried, continuing to stimulate his nether region, "Do you screw them too?"

"Oh, come on!" Candice said haughtily, "This guy just screams _bottom_. I don't think he's going to respond to you, Bambi-chan. I guess As will have to see what he can do with the guy. You're definitely not going to get a rise out of him."

"No?" Bambi said, her lips curling, "You don't think so? Well...I may not be a guy, shinigami, but I know my way around one. And let me tell you, you may think women are too weak for you to fuck or to even touch, but you are about to be seriously taken apart by one of those _weak little women_, and I don't think that when I finish with you, you'll still think we're weak and need to be protected by fucking little pricks like you!"

"I never said that women were weak," Tetsuya said calmly.

"_Shut up_ until I tell you to talk!" Bambi shouted, slapping the bound shinigami across the face.

"Aw, come on, Bambi-chan," complained Gigi, "Let the poor thing talk. He's kinda cute...all chivalrous and everything. It's kinda sad As caught him."

"Women are precious," Tetsuya went on, "My father told me that they are bearers of new life and must always be respected, protected...and admired."

"Uh-oh," Candice muttered in Gigi's direction, "He just made a big mistake..."

"Bearers of life, huh?" Bambi repeated, removing a leather crop from her hip and sliding it provocatively down his heaving chest, "What would you say that makes the ones of us who _can't_ bear new life? Are we like men, then? Are we _stupid, useless pricks_ who throw our weight around and try to pretend we're strong? What are we? Well, speak up, dead man. You won't have many more opportunities."

"Just because you have been damaged doesn't change what you are," Tetsuya said softly, his eyes fixing on Bambietta's, "Women bring beauty and life to the world..."

"As long as we're weak and knocked up by men, isn't that what you're saying?" Bambi demanded, snapping the crop across one pale thigh, leaving an angry, red welt.

Tetsuya flinched and sucked in a sharp breath, but managed to hold on to his composure.

"Women remind us that even in the darkness of our struggles, there is something good and pure in this world."

"What are you _on_?" Bambietta asked sarcastically, "Do you _know_ I'm about to kill you?"

"Yes."

"And you don't care about that?"

"I do."

"You don't wanna die. No one wants to die."

"No."

"Well, you don't have a say about that anymore. You were dead once As Nodt caught you."

"I understand that."

"Well, then you should enjoy what time you have left. You've enjoyed time with guys, right?"

Tetsuya looked back at her silently. Bambi answered with another sharp strike, higher on his exposed thigh, making a second welt alongside the first.

"You should answer me when I ask you a question," she warned him, "Have you been with guys or what? You screw them or do they screw you?"

Tetsuya answered with continued silence, earning another stinging blow.

"That's all right. You don't have to answer that. I can see you're not man enough to take anybody! You're a wimp, a useless weakling! But, before I end your life, I'm gonna make sure you lose your pretty little fantasies about women!"

Tetsuya's jaw clenched as Bambi disappeared from his sight and the other two women moved in closer.

"Poor thing," Candice said, "She's really going to mess you up. But, I guess it wouldn't matter what you said, she was going to do that anyway."

"She's right," Gigi added, "You should have just died out there and not let yourself be caught. I'm kinda sad about that. You're pretty sweet for a shinigami."

"Get out of the way!" Bambi said crossly, reappearing and carrying something in her hand.

She shoved the other two girls aside and leaned over Tetsuya and showed him the device, laughing at the slight loss of composure the sight of it caused him, making his breath quicken and his hands clench.

"What's wrong?" Bambi asked mockingly, "If you've been taken by guys, then this is the only way to get you to respond, ne? This will get that thing up, if nothing else will. I've decided, shinigami, that before I cut you up, you're going to have your first sex with a woman!"

Tetsuya swallowed hard and closed his eyes, shutting everything out as she prepared him for the promised torment. But as she moved to deliver on her threat, a hissing voice sounded, and two of the women disappeared instantly. Bambi looked down at him disdainfully, removed the device and closed his yukata, then she gagged and blindfolded him again.

"I'll be back, shinigami...and I promise you, I will be the last ride you have before you die!"

Tetsuya heard the last of the female sternritters leave the room and was left in silence, shivering and feeling hot tears in his eyes.

_She may have been right about one thing, _he mused inwardly, _It might have been better to die then, like..._

His insides quivered, wondering how his cousin could have survived, knowing that it would have taken a miracle, and that he would probably never see Byakuya alive again.

_Even if I somehow escaped...he was alone and they might have found him and finished him if he did not already succumb to his wounds. Byakuya is most likely dead._

_And I should have died with him!_

"Ah, you are awake," As Nodt's voice said solemnly, "I thank you for your patience while I was away. I would have been back sooner, but I was wounded and needed healing first. But I am here now...and I am curious. Who exactly are you?"


	3. Gemischt

**Chapter 3: Gemischt**

When Byakuya woke next and sat up in the water, his three companions were gone and he was alone with the royal guardsman, Kirinji. The guardsman looked him over briefly and smiled.

"You take long baths," he commented, "That's the longest anyone's spent in my pools. So, how are you? Feeling a little dizzy?"

"Not to worry," Byakuya said softly, "I understand that I still haven't the strength to get dizzy. But...having survived to this point, I will strive to achieve again a level of power worthy of making me feel dizzy."

He heard the guardsman laugh as he began to collapse, then felt himself being caught up and carried off to the next palace. After being fed to within an inch of his life, he was laid down and allowed to sleep for the first time in days. His sleep was restful, and the only dream he had was of Renji, suspended in the water above him, the swirls of crimson hair all around him and his hand holding tightly to Byakuya's. When he finally woke again, he was smiling.

"That must have been a good dream, Taicho," Renji's voice said, startling him into greater wakefulness.

"Renji!" he managed, sitting up and staring at the fully healed and strangely garbed redhead.

"Welcome back, Taicho," Renji said warmly, moving closer and taking one slender, pale hand in his, "Are you feeling better?"

"I am now," Byakuya said, feeling a blush rise on his cheeks as he remembered that in his dream, he had seen Renji's handsome, tattooed body completely naked, "You seem to have been restored as well."

He frowned and reached out to touch the hilt of Renji's sword.

"Renji," he mused, feeling the hot swell of reiatsu that billowed within, "Your bankai has been..."

"Reforged," Renji confirmed, "I'm ready, Taicho. I'm going back and teaching those bastards a thing or two about fighting. But, before I go, there's something I need to give back to you."

The redhead extended a hand and Byakuya stared at the small, black pill that laid in his palm. He reached out a fingertip to touch it and watched as it dissolved into his hand. Tears came to the corners of his eyes as a familiar voice rose up in his mind.

_Master!_

"Senbonzakura!" Byakuya whispered, his eyes rounding.

"Yeah," Renji said, smiling at him, "Kirinji healed you, Kirio powered you up, and now Kisuke made that pill to bring back what that bastard stole from you."

Renji sucked in a surprised breath and froze as Byakuya's restored hand reached up to touch his face.

"They healed and restored me, but they are not the ones who saved me," Byakuya said, his eyes locking on the stunned redhead's, "When I was nearly lost, I called out to you, and it was _your_ hand that pulled me back. You saved me, Renji...so that they could heal me."

The redhead blushed and his hand quivered slightly in Byakuya's.

"Well...you know, don't you? Taicho, whenever you call for me, I will be there for you. I swear it. I'll never, ever fail you again."

"Renji," the noble answered breathlessly, "you never failed me in the first place. It was I who failed, and I promise that I will not fail you again."

Byakuya smiled, earning another shocked reaction from the redhead as he leaned forward, seeking the surprised redhead's lips. And as strong as he was, Renji felt fireworks shake him to the core as those petal-soft lips met his.

"Arigato, Renji."

"Heh," Renji laughed weakly, "No problem, but...I think I'm gonna need some more of Kirio's food. That was some kiss, Taicho, but..."

"I would offer more than a kiss to show you my gratitude, but we are still in extreme circumstances. You must return to the Seireitei soon and I must be trained so that I can follow as soon as possible. But when we are home again...I will show you the greater extent of my gratitude."

Renji blushed brightly as Byakuya offered him a second, longer kiss.

Taicho, I like where this is going," he said, grinning, "but if you don't want me to get distracted thinking about this and get myself killed, then you'd better stop doing that."

**XXXXXXXXXX**

"I will ask you again," As Nodt said, moving back to the door to his quarters and locking it, then returning to Tetsuya's side and removing his gag, "Who are you, nameless son of the Kuchiki clan?"

Tetsuya stiffened, remaining silent as the Sternritter climbed onto the bed and leaned over his bound body.

"I sense that you are a powerful man," As went on, "I have scanned your body and you have very developed spirit centers. You put yourself at great risk to reach your leader. So, you are close to him?"

He frowned as Tetsuya's lips tightened in defiance and he again gave no answer.

"I see you intend to be difficult," the quincy hissed into his ear, making the soft earlobe blush, "That is very foolish. I will hurt you if you do not cooperate. I will kill you. Now, why don't you tell me who you are and save yourself the torment?"

Again, the bound noble refused to answer him.

Anger flickered in the quincy's cold, black eyes at the continued resistance and he threaded his fingers into the Tetsuya's wavy black hair and tightened them painfully, earning him a muted grunt from his stubborn captive.

"Kuchiki," he went on, "it is useless to continue to defy me."

Tetsuya sucked in a pained breath as the quincy's hands opened his yukata, and he felt the tip of something sharp touch his chest, over one of his spirit centers.

"You remember how it feels to be touched by my power, don't you?" As Nodt whispered into the noble's ear, "And if you thought it was bad when you tasted my blood, then you are about to be taken to a new level of pain and terror. If you do not tell me who you are to Kuchiki Byakuya, then I will infuse one of your spirit centers directly with my power! You cannot begin to comprehend the level of agony and horror this will cause you. You should reconsider speaking to me."

Tetsuya took a hissing breath as the Sternritter's fingers tightened in his hair again, but he gave no response. Still, he couldn't hold back a terrified scream of pain as the quincy's thorn pierced his body and sank into the first of his spirit centers.

"I did warn you," As said calmly, letting his reiatsu seep into the area and watching the strong reaction on the noble's comely face at the awful burning sensation, "You see now how large a mistake you made in defying me?"

"S-stop!" Tetsuya gasped, pulling frantically at the bindings on his wrists.

"Oh? You are going to speak to me, then?" As asked in a cool, unaffected tone.

Tetsuya reeled at the ice that continued to run through his veins, at the invasion of horrifying images that blazed in his tortured mind. The feeling increased, making Tetsuya's body shake and sweat as he panted for breath.

"Who are you to Kuchiki Byakuya?" As Nodt asked again, slowly removing his thorn from the noble's body as Tetsuya writhed and screamed. "I suggest you delay no longer in telling me. You only have six more uncorrupted spirit centers, and if I go much further, you will go insane and die. You don't want to die, do you, Kuchiki? Tell me who you are to Byakuya."

"J-just a cousin," Tetsuya stammered, fighting for breath, "I am a half-blood, a mere servant! I am no one important. I only didn't want our leader to be killed! He is...good to the ones like me! He has...been kind to us, even marrying a commoner."

"Ah yes," As Nodt answered quietly, "You are like our gemischt...a mixed blood. There were, at one time, many of the gemischt, but his majesty reclaimed their power and they died. One of them was my servant before. As I have lost him and I have won you from your master by killing him, you belong to me now. So...will you tell me your name, lost Kuchiki son?"

Tetsuya took a surprised breath as the quincy's hands suddenly loosed his bonds. He came to his knees as the Sternritter reached out a hand and removed his blindfold. Tetsuya gasped at the sight of his captor's horridly damaged face. As Nodt smiled wickedly as Tetsuya backed away on his hands and knees, his sapphire eyes rounding in reaction.

"My apologies," As chuckled, "I know my face is shocking to you. I usually don't reveal it, except in battle...or while in bed. You will get used to it. Now then, you can give me your name or I can simply refer to you as 'gemischt.' I have no concern about which you choose."

"Tetsuya," the noble offered softly, "I am Kuchiki Tetsuya."

"Are you?" queried the Sternritter, slipping out of the bed and walking to the computer, across the room.

He tapped at the keyboard for a few moments, then looked back at the noble curiously.

"Well," he mused, "you cannot be a ranking member of the Kuchiki family, Tetsuya. You are nowhere in the files we collected on the nobles...which may mean you are just a servant, as you say, or it may mean that the information was simply very carefully guarded. You are not a member of the Gotei 13."

"No."

"Why not? You obviously could fight for them."

"It is not allowed by the family," Tetsuya explained, lowering his eyes to spare himself the frightening view of the Sternritter, "Mixed bloods are not supposed to 'show up' our pureblooded kin. We are supposed to embrace a life of humility and service to the family."

"Well, now you will serve me. I assume that you were trained to serve Byakuya sexually?"

"N-no," Tetsuya answered, continuing to avert his eyes, "I w-was a house security guard at Kuchiki Manor. I sensed my master's distress and acted before I could think. There is...nothing of that sort between my cousin and me."

"Hmmm," the quincy said, returning to the bed and slowly cornering Tetsuya, "there is even less now between you, as I have killed him and you are mine."

"Why do you even want me?" Tetsuya asked, risking a glance at the quincy and flinching at the sight of him, "I have...no knowledge that will benefit you. I am not valuable as a hostage."

"Don't worry about that," As purred, trapping him up against the wall, then pushing him down onto his stomach and binding his hands to the rail at the end of the bed, "I will decide how best you can serve me."

Tetsuya made a soft sound of distress as the quincy parted his thighs and knelt between them, carefully preparing the noble, then lying down along his bare back.

"Have you had sex with a man before?" the quincy asked.

"Yes."

"With Byakuya?"

"No! I told you, there is..."

"I heard you," As Nodt said calmly, "Who, then? Another servant?"

"No."

"An echt? A pureblood?"

"M-more than one."

"Oh?" As queried, "So, you _were_ a sexual servant?"

"I was a prisoner in a secret prison for the mixed bloods. The guards there used us that way sometimes."

"Ah," the quincy sighed, moving into position and slowly, methodically joining their bodies.

Tetsuya's jaw clenched and his eyes closed tightly. He tried to escape mentally, but was brought back as the quincy continued to interrogate him, even as their coitus began.

"I told you before that I had a gemischt servant," As Nodt breathed into the flushed shell of Tetsuya's ear, "I was actually somewhat fond of him. Like you, he was lovely. He was obedient as well. I rather missed him when he died. But you will make a suitable replacement."

Tetsuya rested his face on the bed, trying harder to escape mentally, only to be drawn back again as the quincy's movements became more intense and his breath shortened.

"What was his name?" the noble asked dizzily, desperate to find any means of escape.

He inhaled in surprise as the sternritter's sharp movements stopped and he reached into the nightstand and removed a photograph. Tears formed in Tetsuya's eyes at the sad, gentle look of the human youth that reminded him painfully of his own first love.

"His name was Hinari Keiji. He came from a good family, but was the result of an unfortunate and ill-advised affair his father had with a servant girl. All three died in the Auswahlen, when our leader reclaimed their stolen power."

"Did you love him?"

"Him? A servant? Of course not," As Nodt answered blithely, resuming his movements, "I did enjoy having sex with him. Like you, he had respectable powers. And he was capable in pleasing me. His voice sounded beautiful in orgasm. I hope yours shall be as enjoyable."

Tetsuya gasped as the quincy's teeth clamped down on the back of his shoulder. He made a guttural sound of distress as his captor's hand curled around his waist and sought his flaccid privates.

"But you seem unmoved by me," As Nodt observed, caressing him as he continued his movements, "We need to fix that."

But even as the heavy stimulation continued and the Sternritter's body stiffened and quivered in climax, Tetsuya's body remained unresponsive. As Nodt glared down at the red marking he had left on the back of the noble's shoulder and frowned reprovingly.

"You should make more of an effort," he scolded the noble, withdrawing from his body and climbing out of the bed, "but you have just lost your cousin and your freedom. I will not punish you this time."

He turned towards the bathroom, then paused as Tetsuya's voice sounded behind him.

"Wait."

"What is it?" As Nodt asked, blinking slowly.

"Those women. The ones that came in while you were gone," Tetsuya intoned softly, "One of them said that they would return to kill me."

"Women?" As Nodt repeated, frowning more deeply, then snarling softly, "Ah, you mean _them_. Well, do not worry. I won't let them reach you again. For now, come with me. We should clean up."

Swallowing hard and rising onto unsteady legs, Tetsuya exited the bed, trying to ignore the uncomfortable dribble that ran down his inner thigh as he followed the quincy into the bathroom. As Nodt let the water heat up, then coaxed Tetsuya in underneath it. He let the water run down his body, then handed Tetsuya the soap.

"Bathe me," he ordered the noble, smiling as Tetsuya quietly shivered, but began to comply.

He smiled serenely as Tetsuya's hands caressed the soap onto his blanched, white skin, then washed him clean. He gazed calmly at the shinigami, who kept his head lowered and his eyes turned aside as the quincy maneuvered him into a corner and sought his nether region again with an insistent hand.

"Now then," AsNodt said meaningfully, "Let's see if it's not possible to bring you to orgasm...Kuchiki Tetsuya.

XXXXXXXXXX

Ichigo paused in his training, still panting from exertion. He wiped the back of a hand across his brow, frowning at the flash image that had suddenly entered his mind and disrupted his focus. From where he stood nearby, Ichibee studied his expression closely.

"Is something wrong?" he asked.

"I don't know," Ichigo admitted, "It's a feeling I've had, since before I left the living world."

"Hmm, tell me about it. Let's see if I can't help you understand it."

Ichigo's brow furrowed in thought.

"It's…my friend, Uryu," Ichigo admitted, "I guess I understand now why he refused to go with us this time. He's a quincy too."

"Ah, I see."

"His father was supposed to marry my mother, but then…my mother was injured saving my dad from one of Aizen Sousuke's crazy hollows. So, if Ryuuken knew all of this time, then did Uryu?"

Ichibee shrugged.

"It's hard to know," he answered, "But, maybe that is not where your mind should be focused."

"Huh?" Ichigo grunted, blinking.

"As you know, _names are important_," Ichibee reminded him, "You call this man your friend. Is he really?"

"Of course he is!" Ichigo snapped, "Uryu and I argue, but he has been nothing but loyal to me. He isn't an enemy just because he's a quincy. I'm a quincy and I'm not an enemy!"

"That is right," the guardsman agreed, "You are an ally, because of your _choices_. And…I advise you as you move forward, to very closely watch the Ishida boy's choices. Only then, will you know what he truly is to you."


	4. The Healing Blade

**Chapter 4: The Healing Blade**

"Where are we going?" Renji asked the king's messenger, following as the young man led Byakuya and him out of the healing center and to an odd, glowing portal.

"Aha!" the redhead said, glaring at the device, "So, there _is_ a way besides bouncing us from platform to platform to get us from one place to the other around here! I _knew _that guy was bullshitting me!"

"Renji," Byakuya said reprovingly, "you should mind your manners. He is taking us to the royal palace."

"The...what?" Renji gasped, stopping, "The...really?"

"Come on!" the noble scolded him, pulling him along by the arm, "We shouldn't keep the king waiting."

"We're gonna see the king?" Renji squawked, his eyes rounding, "But, I thought that..."

"His majesty wishes to speak with you before he sends you back to the Seireitei," their guide informed them.

"Great," the redhead muttered, sweat breaking out on his forehead, "He probably wants to warn us not to get our asses trashed again or he won't be saving them this time!"

"I think that goes without saying," Byakuya said dismissively, "There must be something more important than that if he wants to speak to us personally. Just be quiet and respectful, and let me do the talking!"

"Okay."

"Okay?" Byakuya repeated, narrowing his eyes.

"Okay, _Taicho_," the redhead corrected himself.

"We need to have a talk when we get back," Byakuya said dryly, "You are becoming too lax."

"S-sorry, Taicho. I just...the king, you know? We're really gonna see the king!"

The two quieted as they entered the portal and found themselves walking through a narrow corridor, reminiscent of the precipice world. Another portal opened as they approached it and Rukia and Ichigo proceeded out of it and joined them.

"Hey," the shinigami substitute greeted them, "Byakuya, good to see you awake. You really got trashed. I was worried."

"As you see, I have recovered, although, I am not yet ready to return," Byakuya greeted him, fixing a dark gray eye on him for a moment, "I am pleased to see you have recovered as well. I see your zanpkauto has gone through a transition."

"Yeah," Ichigo affirmed, "Oetsu and Ichibee helped me a lot with that."

"That you use their names so casually," Byakuya chided him.

He paused, sighed and shook his head.

"You certainly are free spirited…"

Ichigo shrugged and smiled.

"Can't seem to help that."

"Hmm."

"It looks like we'll be going back soon," Rukia said as the group followed the king's messenger out another portal and into a small reception area.

A group of guards surrounded the four, leading them into a huge, marble-floored corridor that led to the king's throne room. Shining golden doors opened ahead of them and the messenger stopped them just inside. Rukia and Renji's eyes rounded and they seemed lost for words, but Ichigo's brow furrowed as he took in the odd figure encased in what looked like a crystal bulb. Two guards stood on either side of the king, and as they entered, the one to the king's right side stepped forward and began to approach them.

"What the heck?" Ichigo breathed softly.

"That's the king?" Renji whispered to Byakuya, "Taicho, his reiatsu feels weird…like…"

"Like a quincy?" Byakuya said, earning shocked looks from the others, "That is because…he is a quincy. He is the former king of the quincies, who came here in battle, a thousand years ago…and slayed the true king."

"He…killed the real king?" Ichigo exclaimed softly.

"He did. And he is now our king," Byakuya explained solemnly, "He was incapacitated at the end of the war, and in the aftermath, he agreed to keep the balance of souls and to use his powers to assist us. In return, we see to his comfort here, and we make sure he is not mistreated."

"Except for being imprisoned?" Ichigo asked.

"The crystal housing protects him from harm, and it also protects us from the swells of his power if he loses control. It is a safety measure he also agreed to."

"But…why doesn't everyone know about this?" Renji asked anxiously, "Why the secrecy?"

"Can you imagine the chaos it would have caused to know that our king had died and we were in danger of destruction?" Byakuya mused, "It was the decision of Central 46 at the time, that the commoners would not handle the news well, so they were not burdened with it."

"Well, I don't know about Central 46, but I think I'd rather know the truth," Ichigo said in a low, angry voice.

"I'm with Ichigo," Renji said, shaking his head, "Damn."

Byakuya motioned for them to stop talking as the guard reached them and the messenger bowed his head and addressed the man.

"Lord Protector, these are the shinigamis Reio asked to see," he said, bowing deeply.

"Thank you, Nobu," said he guard's calm, soft voice, "You may go."

The messenger turned and exited the room, and the guard led the four to the king. Byakuya glanced at the others and lowered himself onto his knees. His three companions hastily followed suit. The king looked down at them through dark, eerie eyes, examining them all briefly before speaking, not aloud, but into their minds.

"I am glad to see that all of you have recovered and that you will soon be able to return to the battlefield. The situation is grave and you are badly needed. Kuchiki Rukia, Abarai Renji, you have completed your training?"

"Yeah..._y_es_,_ your majesty," Renji stammered, earning a glare from his disapproving taicho.

"Ichigo, I know that you need to return to your training, but I wanted to update all of you on the situation and how you are needed."

"Of course, your majesty," Ichigo said, nodding, "But, can I ask you something first?"

The king nodded silently.

"I understand you are a quincy, and that you only agreed to remain here and serve the shinigamis because you were too injured to fight anymore. Honestly, how can we know that you are on our side?"

"Ichigo!" Rukia hissed, "For Kami's sake!"

"It is a fair and wise question," the king said into their minds, "I was an enemy to the shinigamis of the past. I have not forgotten this. But, what you should know is that I have seen the future. I know what is to happen, and there is no path for me…but this. Once, I wanted to rule the world…to rule it, but not to destroy it. Should Ywach triumph, then he will destroy _everything_. He will not stop at killing me. He will destroy the shinigami world, Hueco Mundo and the world of the living. What is left behind will be a chaotic maelstrom of creatures fighting to survive, and a king who enjoys watching them struggle and die in vain. I…do not want to see everything in ruins, so I have chosen…my fate."

His strange eyes looked into Ichigo's, and the shinigami substitute felt the weight of his emotions.

"The taichos left in the Seireitei are struggling," the king informed them, "The final attacks will soon commence and if we are not able to stop them, the Sternritters will annihilate every shinigami who survived the first wave. You must use your restored and newly trained powers to prevent that, and to invade the enemy's palace. You will be sent back to a strategic position that will enable you to do that, but the fights will get harder as you advance. In addition, there is someone you must rescue on my behalf."

The four looked at each other questioningly, then back at the king.

"There was a young noble who was taken as the enemy army attacked. They did not kill him, but made him a prisoner. You have to find him where they have imprisoned him in the enemy camp and free him. This young man is not just a shinigami, but is the secret bearer of a healing power that is going to be critical at the end of the war. I have foreseen that he must be protected, and that his death would be the forerunner of millions more if we do not rescue him. Find him. Bring him back safely. I do not want his blood spilled before its time. This will be a difficult task, but I have confidence in you. And...I will be sending someone else along with you to aid you in your search. He is a powerful fighter, and one of my own protectors. He is the King's Samurai...Abarai Katsuro."

Renji's eyes rounded at the sound of the name, then stared in shock as a tall, handsome red and silver-haired man in a black and red kimono stepped out from behind the throne. His eyes swept across the group approvingly, then moved back and fixed on Renji. Renji's jaw dropped and he gazed at the man more closely, studying the familiar features, the long hair, bound into a long braid that curled around one shoulder, the tall, muscular body and bold. black markings that covered him. And even the sword he carried had a touch of similarity to Renji's own.

"I know it is a shock," the king explained, "especially considering that you didn't know he was still alive."

"I wanted to come back when your mother died," the samurai explained in a voice that was a deeper, more melodic version of Renji's, "but except under special circumstances, we cannot safely leave this place."

"You...!" Renji gasped, finally breaking free of his silence, "You are..."

"I'm your father, Renji," the man said, giving him a wide, charming smile.

**XXXXXXXXXX**

Tetsuya stirred sluggishly where he laid on his belly, his wrists still bound to the rail at the head of the bed he laid in and the quincy, As Nodt, still naked and spread out along his back. The sleeping quincy remained entrenched in the captive shinigami's body, connecting the two, even as they slumbered. His body already suffering from the beginnings of corruption by the quincy, Tetsuya moaned softly, shivering at the visions that invaded his restless mind.

_As Nodt crouched within a copse of trees, looking out into the forested area in front of him, watching carefully for any sign of movement._

_"Master?" a soft voice intoned._

_As Nodt's head turned, and his black eyes briefly met those of his servant. The younger quincy set a cup of hot tea in his master's hand and crouched at his side, assisting with the watch as As Nodt sipped at the tea and scanned the forest for the presence of enemies._

_"I don't understand," the younger man said, his eyes troubled, "Why do they hate us so? Why do the shinigamis want to kill us? It is so unfair, Master As Nodt. It is not like we want to upset the balance of souls. It is just that the hollows threaten us all. What are we to do?"_

_"We continue our struggle to survive, of course," As Nodt said, matter-of-factly, "There is nothing else we can do, Keiji."_

_As Nodt felt a touch of warmth inside at the distressed look in the young gemischt's eyes as he continued to survey the darkened forest._

_"I understand," Keiji said, more softly, "but it makes me sad. It makes me afraid, Master."_

_As Nodt closed his eyes, scanning the area again and concluding that, for the moment, they had eluded the enemy. He slipped an arm around his servant's shoulders and let his face burrow into the soft waves of dark hair, seeking the younger man's throat and smiling at the instant blush it brought to Keiji's fine skin._

_"M-master!" the younger quincy objected, sucking in a surprised breath as As Nodt's seeking hand slipped beneath his clothing and sought his warm privates, "Sh-shouldn't we focus on watching for them? N-not that I do not like being touched by you, but...they could find us!"_

_"That is always a threat," As agreed, caressing the younger man's privates and nibbling the sweet flesh beneath a flushed earlobe, "But even though we are threatened by them, we should not let it steal away all of the brightness in our lives. That isn't living, Keiji."_

_The quincy servant opened his mouth to answer, only to find that sweet orifice invaded by a hardened, commanding tongue. Keiji's soft hands clenched and he groaned as he felt himself being pushed back and braced against a tree, where As Nodt held him while opening his clothing and slowly preparing him._

_"M-master!" Keiji pleaded, the word muffled by the assault of the elder quincy's tongue, "Master, I am...I am afraid!"_

_"Do not fear them," As hissed softly, gently nibbling, then suckling the younger man's earlobe and enjoying the strong reaction in his servant's heated loins, "We will be strong. We will fight back. We will make them fear us, Keiji!"_

_"Master!" Keiji gasped, reeling as the elder quincy positioned himself and took his servant, still standing and pressed back against the tree._

_Keiji's words faded into soft, lovely sounds of intense pleasure and his hands gripped As Nodt's shoulders firmly. His hips pressed forward eagerly to meet each hard, grinding thrust his master offered, and as they moved together, the tremor went out of the younger man's hands and the panic left his eyes. He groaned in surrender, his legs shaking and threatening to collapse as the elder quincy's body went taut, shuddering as he loosed his seed into the younger man. Keiji sighed, his own body quivering in release and a feeling of blissful satedness joining with As Nodt's fierce heat to warm him inside._

_"Are you still afraid?" As Nodt asked quietly, brushing a sweaty strand of Keiji's hair away from his eyes and kissing him on one flushed cheek._

_"No," Keiji whispered, resting his head gently on As Nodt's shoulder, "Master has filled me with courage again. I have nothing to fear...nothing at all."_

_"I won't let the shingamis harm you," As Nodt promised, caressing the younger man's face with graceful fingertips, "I will protect you from them."_

The scene in Tetsuya's mind shifted to a later time, a candlelit room, where Keiji laid, his slender body dressed in a soft yukata and his fading eyes looking up into his master's.

_"M-master," he managed in a trembling voice, "I am afraid to leave you."_

_"You don't need to be afraid for me," As Nodt chided him, "You remember that, after the massacre, his majesty granted me his power so that I would be strong."_

_"I do not fear that Master will not be strong enough," Keiji explained, reaching up a shaky hand to touch As Nodt's face, "I don't want you to be alone."_

_"You think I will miss you?"_

_"No," Keiji whispered, a tear leaking onto his face, "An echt of your status has no need for the company of a mere gemischt like me. I just...I love Master and I don't want him to feel lonely."_

_"What a lovely sentiment," As Nodt said, caressing Keiji's hand, then kissing it lightly._

_He touched the dying man's face and brushed warm kisses on his lips, at the same time, clamping down hard on the emotions it evoked in him._

_"You are a fine servant," he whispered, squeezing the younger man's hand a final time, "and yes, Keiji, I will miss you."_

_"Thank you, my Master!" the younger quincy sighed, his eyes drifting closed, "Thank you for taking away my fears. I am dying but I am not afraid. Even though I am leaving you, my heart will still love you."_

_As Nodt watched with shadowed eyes as the life left his servant's body and Keiji's last breath came out in a contented sigh. He sat next to his deceased lover, holding his limp hand as the warmth seeped away and keeping his face serenely calm._

_"I love you too."_

As Nodt's eyes opened suddenly, and found Tetsuya's observing him over a naked shoulder. The quincy read the shinigami's stricken expression and he rolled Tetsuya onto his back and laid down on top of him, glaring coldly into his widened blue eyes.

"You saw, didn't you?" As Nodt hissed in a chilling voice, "You know, then?"

"You did love him," Tetsuya whispered, tears leaking onto his face, "a servant...a gemischt. You..."

His words disappeared as the quincy's mouth came down hard on his, stopping the words and sending a heavy weight crashing down on the captive shinigami's reeling heart.

"Why?" Tetsuya cried, closing his eyes tightly as the quincy's fingers hastily prepared him and his body was roughly breached, "Why didn't you tell him? Why did you let him die before you said the words! You let him die in agony. You let him die, thinking he wasn't anything to you! You loved him, but when your leader stole his power and took his life, you stood watching and didn't fight for him at all! You..."

"I was _afraid_," As Nodt whispered into the noble's ear, stunning Tetsuya into silence and leaving him staring at the quincy in dismay, "As strong as I was, I could not stand against the shinigamis. I was injured and dying, and the only thing that kept me alive was his majesty's power. I realized then that if I wanted to live, I must obey his majesty at all costs. And when he reclaimed Keiji's power and my lover died, I didn't want his death to be in vain!"

Tetsuya gasped and strained against his bonds as the touches on his body became rougher and more insistent.

"I couldn't save Keiji. There is no way to resist the will of his majesty. He grants all of us our powers and he can take them back at will. The only way to live is to obey him!"

"So, why haven't you turned me over to him?" Tetsuya asked suddenly, making As Nodt's body freeze atop his, "Why are you keeping me here and not telling him about me?"

"You think I won't, shinigami?" As Nodt asked icily, "You think that, because of him, I will show _you_ mercy? That is very, very foolish, Kuchiki Tetsuya! I am keeping you here for one reason and one reason only."

"Why, then?"

"I want you to tell me where they are," As Nodt said in a low, threatening voice.

"I don't...!"

"Of course you know," the quincy said sternly, "You were Byakuya's protector. Of course you would have known the way to the family so that you could reunite him with them, once you found him. I am many things, Kuchiki Tetsuya, but I am neither stupid nor merciful. Now, if you want to live, you will tell me where your women and children are hidden!"

"I don't know!" Tetsuya insisted, reeling as a striking hand stung his cheek, "I don't! You don't think that the family would have confided such a thing in a half-blood, do you? They _hated_ me! They _imprisoned_ me for years! Even now, they look down on me! Why would they entrust their lives to someone like me? I don't know where they are!"

"Yes, you do," As Nodt said calmly, his body glowing threateningly as several golden thorns formed between them, "And if you don't want to die right now, you will tell me where the rest of the Kuchiki family is hidden!"

Tetsuya screamed as one of the thorns passed through his chest and found a second spirit center and slowly poisoned it with malevolent reiatsu.

"His majesty wants the shinigamis to die," As Nodt went on, slowly breaching and corrupting another spirit center and leaving Tetsuya gasping and on the verge of losing consciousness.

"I will die before I ever betray them to you!" the writhing shinigami spat venomously, "You said that you loved him, but the truth is, you didn't! If you truly had loved him, then you wouldn't have been afraid to die for him! Look into my eyes. I am _not _afraid to die for the one I protect! This is what love is, As Nodt, and I am the reason you so fear really feeling it!"

Tetsuya's words ended in a pained gasp as a fourth spirit center was breached. His face went pale and his eyes blinked dazedly and closed. As Nodt stared down at the unconscious shinigami in surprise, his vision flickering strangely and his eyes flickering with torment.

"Wake up," he whispered, touching Tetsuya's blanched face and shaking him gently.

An odd jolt of memory jabbed at the quincy and he shook the young man more urgently, breaking the bonds on his wrists and pulling him close.

"Wake up!" he pleaded, his eyes widening as Tetsuya's body seemed to shift back and forth between Keiji's and his own, "WAKE UP!"

He clutched Tetsuya to his chest, closing his eyes tightly and loosing his words in a desperate shriek.

"WAKE UP, KEIJI!"

A chill shot through As Nodt as a familiar step sounded in his doorway.

"As Nodt?"

The quincy froze, still holding Tetsuya against him.

"Yes, your majesty."

"You needn't trouble yourself with him anymore. Give him to me."

As Nodt remained still and silent as Ywach stepped closer, observing him through dark, shadowed eyes.

"You don't need him anymore," he said again, "My power is all that you need, ne?"

"Y-yes, your majesty," the quincy said numbly, his fingers loosening reluctantly as the quincy leader took Tetsuya's unconscious body from his arms.

"You are better off without him. He is nothing. He is a means to an end. You will be rewarded for finding him. I will extract what we need from him and we will destroy the Kuchiki family. We will crush the noble families, demolish the Gotei 13 and annihilate all of the shinigamis as they wanted to annihilate us. This is what they deserve. Do not forget that."

"Yes, your majesty," As Nodt said, more calmly, watching in silence as the quincy leader carried Tetsuya out of the room.

He remained on the bed, still breathing in Tetsuya's soft, sakura scent and feeling the touch of the shinigami's warm skin against his. He started to rise, then paused at feeling something beneath one braced hand. He picked up the item from the bed, staring at it silently in the darkness...a bright silver pendant with a blue moonstone at its center.

He left the bed and found the tools he needed to mend the broken clasp, then looked at the pendant again before setting it in place at his own throat.

"You are courageous like him, Kuchiki Tetsuya," he whispered, "But, you will find that the only thing your courage ends in...is death. I am sorry. I could not save you. I am not courageous like you."

He sighed softly and closed his eyes.

"I am afraid."

XXXXXXXXXX

"My...what?" Renji repeated, looking stunned, "I didn't know that..."

"Surely you knew you _had_ a father," Katsuro chuckled, looking amused, "And I'll confess that your mother was the sweetest flower that ever grew on the Shihoin family tree!"

"What?" Byakuya and Renji gasped, staring.

"Shihoin Tama," Katsuro said, his eyes softening, "I encountered him when I came to the Seireitei during the first conflict with the quincies."

"The _first conflict with the quincies_?" Byakuya repeated, disbelievingly, "But that was...that means that Renji must be..."

"Tama was charming, if a little, erm, _challenging_. I didn't realize that I had impregnated him when we were together," the samurai stated, grinning at the blush it brought to the faces of the sixth squad taicho and his fukutaicho, "Tama was the oddball, powerful male in a family where mostly females were leaders. This made him somewhat temperamental and not eager to return to his family. When I found out about you, Tama had moved into the Rukongai, knowing that it wasn't safe to have a samurai's son in the Seireitei, where he might have been discovered. He shaded your reiatsu and took you to the lower Rukongai, where he later succumbed to illness, relating to his wounds from the war. I could not return to collect you, as we are only allowed to leave the royal realm with special permission. It is too dangerous to the king. But...I did watch over you from here."

"You!" Byakuya said, his eyes widening, "You are of the secret royal clan?"

"All of my samurai are of the secret royal clan," the king explained quietly, "And each will serve me in his time. Renji, you too will someday serve me as well...or perhaps my descendent. But...back to the matter at hand, the situation in the Seireitei is desperate. You must return there and do what you can to stop the advance of the Vandenreich. Ywach and his Sternritters must be stopped! And...you, Kuchiki Byakuya, must find and rescue your cousin, Tetsuya, before Ywach realizes what he is."

"Tetsuya!" Byakuya mused.

"Tetsuya is the noble you were talking about? The transcendent?" Renji exclaimed, "I mean, he is powerful, but...?"

"Tetsuya is a very young transcendent," the king said more softly, "Unknown to even him, Tetsuya is a direct descendant of the Kuchiki progenitor, Kuchiki Hajime."

"Kuchiki Hajime!" Byakuya gasped.

"Who is that?" Renji and Ichigo asked together.

"Kuchiki Hajime was the first noble that our original king created," Byakuya explained in a shocked voice, "After the clans were sent to live in the Seireitei, the king made Hajime his consort. Hajime possessed a powerful healing gift that was housed in a full elemental sword."

"A full elemental?" Ichigo mused.

"As all of you know, Tetsuya's Rekuhime is a water spirit, but if what his majesty says is true, Tetsuya's zanpakuto is only partially awakened."

"You are correct," the king affirmed, "Tetsuya must be found and brought safely to the royal realm. It is his power that we will need in the end, if we wish to survive. I can sense Tetsuya's reiatsu and I can tell you that he is in the enemy palace, held captive by the Sternritter, As Nodt."

"As Nodt!" Byakuya gasped, remembering suddenly the flash image he had seen of his cousin, just before losing consciousness completely, "That monster took Tetsuya?"

"Yes," confirmed the king, "Tetsuya sensed your distress and went to find you. He did reach you, but he was captured by As Nodt and made a captive of the Vandenreich. I do not know if Ywach is aware of him being in the palace. As Nodt seems content to keep the young man to himself."

"Which, strangely enough, is fortunate," explained Katsuro, "If that bastard knew Tetsuya was a transcendent, he would kill him immediately to make a key to enter the royal realm!"

"He could do that?" Rukia whispered in horror.

"Tetsuya's soul is able to pass into the royal realm, as others are not," the king went on, "If this is discovered and Ywach absorbs him, the imprint of Tetsuya's soul would give him easy entrance here."

"But if Tetsuya could be used that way, then why was he allowed to remain in the Seireitei?" Byakuya asked, "And what about Renji? Couldn't he also be used that way?"

"The samurai are residents of the royal realm because of their extreme reiatsu that would be dangerous to the Seireitei and its residents," said the king, "They are not transcendents, but very powerful noble class shinigamis. But, Byakuya, you now wield reiatsu on that level. That is why Shutara's clothing must remain wrapped around you until you are in greatest need. Once it opens, your full reiatsu will be released. You must only allow this to happen as a last resort. Now, Ichigo, you must return to finish your training. Rukia and Renji, you complete final preparations to return to the Seireitei and start our advance battles. Byakuya and Katsuro, I want to speak to you further regarding your mission to retrieve Tetsuya."

"Yes, your majesty," the group said together.

Byakuya and Katsuro watched as the others departed, then turned back towards the king.

"My samurai," the king said, smiling as Katsuro's head dipped respectfully in response, "Byakuya, you will return to the Seireitei together, but when you arrive, Byakuya will need to search for As Nodt, while you, Katsuro, must infiltrate the palace. Once you find As Nodt, Byakuya, you must prevent him from returning to the palace, while Katsuro will search for and free Tetsuya. But be warned...I have sensed the corruption of the first of Tetsuya's spirit centers by As Nodt's powers. Not only does this mean that if he dies, his soul will be tribute to Ywach, it also means the countdown has begun to the enemy discovering his true nature. With each center's corruption, the end draws nearer. And if the core spirit center is breached, Tetsuya's mind will be lost and his body will be forced into transcendence. But instead of a healer, he will become a true monster. The chaotic reiatsu will turn him into a spirit demon. This must be prevented at all costs, even if he must, in the end, be destroyed!"

"But, your majesty!" Katsuro exclaimed, "If he dies..."

"I know," the king replied shortly, cutting him off, "There will be many additional deaths because of it."

"Your majesty!" Byakuya said, breathlessly.

The soul king's eerie eyes fixed the two in place and his voice rang deep in their hearts as he spoke again.

"You are my last hope. Please...do not fail me!"


	5. Under the Chill, White Moon

**Chapter 5: Under the Chill, White Moon**

Renji followed as a guard led him through the royal palace, to an ornate set of doors at the end of a hallway.

"The master samurai is inside," the guard told him, "He is expecting you."

"Thanks," Renji said, frowning as he knocked on the doors.

"Come in," Katsuro's voice called out to him.

Renji opened the doors and entered the chamber, looking around as he did, and taking in the warm, welcoming feel of the room. The colors in the room were all rich and earthy, like the man in front of him. The elder man's reiatsu hummed softly all around and his strong presence seemed to fill the room.

"Renji, I'm glad we could see each other to talk before you go back. I know you have questions. Would you like a glass of wine?"

"Eh, yeah, sure," the redhead said uncertainly.

_I think I need the whole damned bottle._

"Sit down," Katsuro invited him, motioning to a chair that sat at a small table in the room.

Renji sat down, waiting as the samurai brought the wine to the table and joined him. He handed his son a glass and took a long swallow of his own drink.

"Ah," he sighed, "where do we begin?"

"I have no idea," Renji answered, draining his glass.

Katsuro's smile warmed, and he filled his son's glass again.

"Well, there's something you got from me," he chuckled.

"Really?" Renji asked, smiling very faintly.

"Tama was a lightweight," the elder Abarai said, an affectionate look coming into his eyes, "I don't know. Maybe it was just another cruelty of fate…that he couldn't even have that to help him deal with the things that came his way."

He drained his own glass and refilled it.

"Things like me," he sighed.

"Why do I feel like I'm going to have a lot of sympathy for him?" Renji mused.

"Ah, fate was not kind to Tama," Katsuro went on, "Being a male Shihoin isn't fun, in the first place. Being a breeder male in a clan like that one…"

"A breeder male?" Renji repeated, staring, "You mean…like Taicho's cousin, Tetsuya?"

"Well, where did you think you came from?" Katsuro asked, smirking at him, "Yes, Tama was a breeder male, which only gave his siblings more ammunition to give him a hard time. They weren't bad to him exactly, but you know how the Shihoin clan is."

Renji shook his head, smiling ruefully as he recalled a number of Yoruichi's antics.

"Yeah, I have some experience with that," he laughed.

"The lady Yoruichi, huh?" Katsuro guessed.

"How did you know?" Renji asked in an amused tone.

"I told you before that, even though I couldn't be there, I watched over you."

All levity left the younger Abarai's face as he thought back and his voice was softer and more poignant as he asked his next question.

"But watching over me didn't really mean anything, did it? I mean, all those times Rukia and I and our friends had to fight for our lives, those times we watched our friends die…until we were the only ones left? You never did a thing to stop any of it, did you?"

"What was I going to do?" Katsuro asked, "I have a position close to the king. I can't just leave anytime I have a problem."

"Then, what good did watching do?" Renji demanded, "I was just as alone. You wouldn't have raised a finger to help me, right?"

Katsuro sighed resignedly.

"If Reio had foreseen that much of a threat to you, he would have sent me. You just have to realize the seriousness of doing that. It is not good for the worlds below us to be exposed to such extremes of power as we wield. As your power has grown, I know that Byakuya has been teaching you how to repress it so that you don't just destroy things when your temper flares, right?"

"Well, yeah."

Katsuro's cinnamon eyes locked on his.

"If I didn't carefully control my reiatsu, the ground would break under my feet and anything that was too weak would simply die as I passed. Renji, we are talking about responsibility on a level that demands that we do not just run off and take impulsive actions. I watched over you, and Reio's visions made sure that you were protected, so that, when the time came, I could finally meet you, face to face, and tell you…I am sorry."

Renji blinked in surprise.

"You're sorry?" he mused, "Sorry for what? According to you, you had no choice, right?"

"That did make the situation easier on either one of us," Katsuro said, lowering his dark eyes, Right? Wrong? They were just a blue to me. I always…always wanted to protect you."

Renji's eyes rounded and he felt an odd tickle of what felt like fear.

"Now that Tama is gone, you are all I have to remind me of the love we shared…however brief it was."

"I thought you said that Tama didn't like you," Renji said, shaking his head.

"Tama hated me," Katsuro said, his eyes misting, "and he loved me. And in the end, Tama died because of me. That is something for which I will never forgive myself."

XXXXXXXXXX

Haschwald," Ywach greeted his second in command, looking up from where he sat on his white throne as Haschwald entered the Silbern throne room.

"I have a report on the shinigami noble that As Nodt captured," Haschwald stated quietly.

"Has the prison master's torture loosened his tongue, then?" the quincy king asked, "Has he revealed where the Kuchiki family is concealed?"

"No. He has, in fact, been extremely resistant. It was some time before the prison master realized that even under a limiter, he had a natural ability that helped him to escape much of the pain of his torments. Once this was discovered, the seal was strengthened and the torments continued until we had to stop or risk him dying without telling us anything."

"No matter," Ywach said off-handedly, "We will have that information when he dies and his soul comes to me, but I want him to be broken first. I want him to betray his clan before he dies. I must confess, though, he is surprisingly resilient."

"Yes. He was near the ends of his tolerance, when there was some sort of anomaly. A presence was felt entering the chamber and joining with his, and his soul was strengthened. We thought, at first, it was another odd ability and strengthened the seal to its fullest capacity, but rather than an ability, it seemed the return of a part of his own soul that was called back from outside his body as he weakened. Whatever it was, it could no longer be sustained outside of his body. I have researched our files on the shinigamis carefully, but I have found no precedent for this. It seems to be yet another anomaly in this particular half-blood."

"Well, being anomalies ourselves, I imagine you and I understand the value in difference."

"Yes, your majesty," Haschwald agreed.

"Is he still being tortured?" Ywach asked calmly.

"No. He has been healed, but left feeling the residual pain, sir...as you ordered. But..."

Haschwald moved forward and touched a button on a nearby console, causing a viewing screen to come on in front of the quincy king, "I noticed this and wondered what you would think of it."

The two observed silently as a white-clad figure slipped into Tetsuya's cell and slowly approached the semi-conscious shinigami.

"Interesting," Ywach murmured, watching closely.

"Do you want me to stop him?"

"No."

"Sir?"

"You know, Haschwald, sometimes a little bit of well used kindness, skillfully applied, can wear down a person in torment that much faster. Let them be, for now."

"Ah...As you wish."

XXXXXXXXXX

The royal attendant moved out in front of Byakuya as the two approached the door leading into the private quarters of the king's samurai. He tapped respectfully on the large, ornate wooden door and paused as a deep, male voice issued from within.

"Enter."

"The attendant opened the door and the noble passed through, stiffening slightly as he spotted the half-dressed samurai standing in front of a set of finely crafted mirrors, the full array of his bold, almost feathery looking tattoos on display to the two who entered.

"Byakuya," the samurai greeted the Kuchiki heir, smirking at the slight blush on the noble's face, "I hope your training went well."

"I cannot complain," Byakuya answered quietly, his eyes drifting down to observe the lovely blue hilt of his restored zanpakutou, "especially now that my bankai has been returned."

"Ah, yes, I felt it as it arrived here," Katsuro said approvingly, "Urahara Kisuke is a wonder, ne?"

"Hmmm," Byakuya intoned in a non-committal voice, "Who knew that his forays into the dubious practice of hollowfication would actually work in our favor."

"Yes, yes," Katsuro chuckled, "Well, all's well that ends well. I am glad to see you alive and returned to good health. I imagine old Ginrei was pleased too, ne? How is that old war dog, anyway?"

"My grandfather is well," Byakuya said in a disapproving tone, "although I might take offense at you calling him that way. But I have heard of the royal samurai's sometimes scandalous behavior. I hope, at very least, your fighting skills are better than your manners."

Byakuya blinked in surprise at the carefree sound of Katsuro's laughter. He watched, more curiously as the samurai twisted his red and silver hair into a long braid and let it fall over his left shoulder, then finished dressing.

"My apologies, Byakuya," Katsuro apologized, still smirking good naturedly, "I am afraid that so much attention was paid to increasing my protective abilities that there wasn't time left to teach me any manners."

Byakuya caught his breath softly as the samurai's expression hardened and his eyes glinted with determination.

"But, my pretty noble friend," Katsuro went on, "I think that you are much more in need of my sword than my charms right now, ne? If you want your lovely cousin to live, then you had best be glad that no corners were cut in my training. I assure you, once I set out on a blood trail, I will not fail. Everything is depending on me bringing that young man back alive, and I will do that."

"For his majesty," Byakuya said, arching a fine eyebrow skeptically.

"Yes," Katsuro said, giving the noble a wink, "_And_ because I could never leave such a beautiful creature like him in the hands of a foul enemy!"

The samurai loosed another amused laugh at the irritated look the Kuchiki leader gave him.

"Just be sure that Tetsuya comes back safely," he said stiffly, "He risked everything to find me after I was injured, and because of that, he was taken by the enemy. He doesn't deserve to die at their hands."

"No," said Katsuro, looking down at the image of Tetsuya he had been given, "And he will not. You have my word."

"This from the man who left his own son to live or die on the streets of Inuzuri?"

Byakuya paused at the flash of guilt that touched the samurai's usually well-controlled features, then disappeared again.

"No one's perfect," he said quietly, "I agree with you that I am a terrible father to Renji. But I will be the rescuer that our king and your cousin need."

"I hope so," Byakuya sighed, falling in beside the samurai as they left the room and turned towards the sendoff point.

XXXXXXXXXX

Uryu paused, sensing no one nearby, but waiting for several long moments to be sure, then he moved forward, still cautious, into the holding cell where the shinigami prisoner laid, tightly bound in heavy restraints. He could hear the restless shifting of the young man's body, the harsh sound of his discomfited breaths and soft sounds of his continued pain, even as he tried to escape into unconsciousness. Upon reaching the young man, Uryu's eyes darkened at finding him nearly senseless, in a heavy sweat and quivering.

"Tetsuya-san," he breathed softly, his fingertips lightly touching the prisoner's comely face and his eyes watching as just a small bit of healing reiatsu caused a sound of mingled relief and continued agony to escape the young man.

"I-ishida-san?" Tetsuya managed wearily, "Y-you are...Ishida-san? Ichigo-s-san's friend?"

"Yes."

Tetsuya's hazy eyes took in the quincy's clothing and grim expression, and he shivered.

"Y-you a-are with th-them?" the noble whispered brokenly.

"Let's not talk about that right now," Uryu intoned softly, looking around, then slowly intensifying his healing reiatsu, "I am going to heal you the rest of the way and make sure you aren't in pain. You understand, I can't free you, but I will do this much."

"Ishida-san, wh-why would you h-help them?" Tetsuya persisted, his voice shaking, "D-did they force you?"

"I am sorry. I told you, I can't talk about that right now. Just close your eyes and try to rest, all right? Is the pain going away?"

"Yes," Tetsuya assured him, his voice strengthening slightly as the healing continued, "thank you."

"Don't thank me. And don't think of me as an ally right now...not if you want to live. I am going to put you into a deeper sleep that will restore you more fully. It will help you endure for a while longer."

"What good will that do?" Tetsuya asked softly, "You know they are going to kill me as soon as they extract what they want from me."

"They will kill you even if you tell them nothing," Uryu informed him, "You have already been given a bit of the quincy king's soul and when you die, your soul, everything you are and everything you know, will become his. The torments he has ordered for you are just plain cruelty. He already knows he has won and is just playing games with you to try to get you to betray them. Your only hope is the shinigamis who are approaching. I will strengthen you and you must survive until they can break in and rescue you, do you understand?"

Tetsuya's lips stiffened in protest, but he nodded briefly.

"I would help you more, but I am not in a position to do so," Uryu went on, "Has the pain been relieved?"

"Yes."

"Good. I'm going to make you sleep now. With any luck, you will not wake until rescue comes for you."

"Uryu?"

The quincy paused, looking down into Tetsuya's troubled eyes.

"Rescue will come for you as well."

"Go to sleep. They aren't going to hurt you anymore."

Uryu sent claming waves of reiatsu through his hands and into Tetsuya's slender body, making the shinigami's eyes glaze over and slowly close. He watched the slower, more gentle rise and fall of Tetsuya's pale breast for several minutes until he was sure the young man's condition was stable, then he withdrew his hands and stepped back, freezing as he felt Haschwald's presence behind him. He sucked in a surprised breath and stared at the other quincy in dismay.

"Don't be so alarmed," Haschwald told him in an unconcerned tone, "Your actions haven't surprised anyone, and I didn't come to stop you."

"You didn't?"

"No. His majesty's order was simply to find you and bring you to see him."

"He was watching me?"

"You are always being watched, of course," Haschwald acknowledged, "but there was little point in stopping you as healing him or not healing him would not change his fate. All of the shinigamis are going to die. You had best make peace with that."

"I understand," Uryu sighed, "I only felt that the torture was unnecessary, given that the king will have what he wants from this man when he dies anyway."

Uryu stiffened as the king's second in command drew his sword and pointed the tip at Tetsuya's soft breast, just over his heart.

"And what if I choose to give the king what he wants right now?" he asked meaningfully.

"Then, I can't stop you," Uryu said simply, "but I wish that you would not."

"Because you know him? Because you like him? Because you sympathize with him?" Haschwald asked accusingly.

"I don't know him well," Uryu confessed, "but I have heard he has had a difficult life among the nobles. He was born in an illegal prison and was not rescued until he was nearly grown. He is like one of our gemischt, a half-blood noble who survived horrible things and yet returned to his noble family and served its leader faithfully."

"Just as you serve your master faithfully?" Haschwald asked pointedly.

Uryu said nothing more, only gazing silently at Tetsuya, his heart pounding as he tried to read Haschwald's intent. The other quincy stared back at him, his eyes revealing nothing. Then, finally, he returned his weapon to its sheath and nodded at Uryu.

"Come then. The king awaits you."

Without looking back, Uryu followed him out of the cell.

XXXXXXXXXX

The sound of approaching footsteps trickled into Tetsuya's tortured mind, bringing him awake and making him wonder if it could be As Nodt returning, or perhaps the quincy, Uryu.

_It is most likely that my tormenters have sensed I've recovered, and they are returning to engage in even worse atrocities. There is not an inch of my body that has been spared seething pain. There is not a place within me they have not corrupted. If I thought that what Orochi did to me within the prison was awful, I knew nothing at all about what that word means. I don't know how much more I can bear before my heart dies inside me._

_I almost wish it would._

_I can't bear this anymore!_

_But...Uryu said that someone is coming._

_Byakuya-sama came for me before, but...he died, didn't he? _

_Or was that just a dream?_

_Kami, I don't know what is real anymore and what is dream or nightmare!_

_Won't someone help me?_

Tetsuya felt a dark presence beside him and shivered as he felt just a flicker of As Nodt's presence. He opened his eyes and felt his heart freeze in his chest as his eyes encountered, not As Nodt, but the quincy king, himself. He stared wordlessly at the man who had brought about the deaths of so many, and could find no words to speak to him.

"Shinigami, I am told that you will not tell us where the Kuchiki family is hiding," Ywach intoned softly, "Why do you resist? Do you think that you can save them?"

"No," Tetsuya answered softly, "I know better than that. You only wish to cause me pain by trying to force me to reveal their location. You could have the information now if you desired it. But that information is less important to you than causing me pain."

"You think I want you to hurt?" Ywach asked.

"I think you enjoy being cruel," Tetsuya answered, a shiver going through his body as he sensed how close he was to dying at the king's hands, "I don't know why you would want to hurt me when I don't even know you, but I sense very clearly that is what you want. Do you deny it?"

Ywach gave him a chilling smile.

"You want to understand me, shinigami?" he asked softly, "Well then, perhaps you shall."

Tetsuya gasped in dismay as the bonds on his body suddenly shattered, freeing him.

"Get up and follow me," Ywach ordered him.

Tetsuya shivered and closed his eyes.

_I need only provoke him one more time and he will kill me._

_What can I do?_

_If I live, I know that I will suffer even more than his horrid subordinates made me suffer...and that was already unbearable._

_But as soon as I die, the location of the family will be revealed to him._

_I have no choice._

"Shinigami..."

"Where are we going?"

Ywach only smiled more chillingly.

"Come," he invited the noble, extending a warm hand.

His whole body shaking, Tetsuya slowly accepted it and sat up slowly. He slid off the hard table he had laid upon and instantly collapsed at the quincy king's feet. He waited for some kind of spoken cruelty or the return of pain to his awareness, but all that reached him was the odd gentleness in the quincy king's arms that lifted him off the floor and carried him out of the prison.

_I remember this..._Tetsuya's tortured mind remembered, _being lifted like this, being lost and near the end, then being rescued and carried away to a safe place. But this is deceptive. There is no safety in the arms that hold me. But strangely, there is no hatred in his arms either. Instead, I feel..._

_his gratitude?_

"You have resisted well," Ywach complimented him, "If Byakuya lived, then he would be proud of you. As he is not here to honor your courage, I will do that instead."

"I don't understand," Tetsuya managed, barely able to force his voice to remain calm, "What do you mean?"

For a long time, the only answer he received were the echoing footsteps of the quincy king as he traversed a long white hallway, then entered a large, well-apportioned bedroom. Then, Tetsuya felt himself being lowered into a comfortable bed and placed in gentler restraints. His heart pounding so hard he thought it would burst, he closed his eyes as he felt the king's hands slowly bare him, then felt surprisingly warm fingers trace the contours of his body.

"You have been well made, for a half-blood," Ywach commented appreciatively, "One could look at you and forget your impurity, but...I do not need to forget. I never hated you for being of mixed blood."

"Just for being a shinigami," Tetsuya managed softly.

"I don't hate anyone," Ywach whispered in his ear, sending a hard shiver down the noble's spine.

"But you kill them easily," Tetsuya whispered back, "You kill them coldly, and without hesitation."

"Does that bother you?"

"Of course it bothers me," Tetsuya replied, a flare of anger beneath his voice, "You end lives all of the time, not caring about what matters to them, what they love, what they protect!"

"You mean...like what _you_ protect?" the king queried softly, "You misunderstand. When I take a life, it becomes a part of me, Tetsuya. And instead of dying, their wishes, their hopes and dreams, all that they care about are joined with me too. When you die and you reveal to me where your family is hidden, I will take them into myself too, and I will make them a part of me. You will all live on inside me and be honored for your sacrifice in giving me power. It is not hatred with which I will take your lives, but love, Tetsuya. But you feel that, don't you? You noticed the warmth of my appreciation in the hands that touched you before. Feel them touch you again now and embrace your fate."

"No!" Tetsuya cried, struggling as the king's body pressed down on his, "You can steal what you want and I can't stop you! But you will never make me give myself willingly! NEVER!"

The noble sucked in a surprised breath at the sudden coldness that returned to Ywach's dark, dangerous eyes. Those eyes glared down at him, studying him icily for some time, then the king's cruel lips smiled.

"Very well, then," he said softly, "Defy me with your words, Tetsuya."

He leaned closer and Tetsuya felt the close presence of death as Ywach slowly prepared him and joined their bodies together.

"Y-you are a monster!" Tetsuya hissed, looking into the depthless eyes of the quincy king and ignoring what was happening to his body completely, "You can kill me and you can take the lives of every shinigami in existence, but you will NEVER make me serve you!"

"Is that so?" Ywach asked softly, closing his eyes at the softness and pleasant scent of the noble and smiling wickedly, "I think that you will serve me, and I know just the way."

Tetsuya's mind froze as the king whispered a series of words he couldn't understand, his body moving more harshly, then pausing and shuddering hard as he released his scathing poison into the shinigami's restrained body.

"Remember, when you return to them, that the order came from me...but the hand that will slay all of them and claim them for me...will be yours."

Ywach withdrew from Tetsuya's shaking body, pausing as he rose to shatter the restraints and smiling at the shinigami's confused expression.

"You have been amusing, Tetsuya," the king chuckled softly, "You are free to go. You bear my mark now and none of the quincies will harm you."

"What?" Tetsuya panted, staring at him in disbelief.

"Go now," Ywach said, glancing back at him, "If you want so much to return to your family, then leave."

"What did you do to me?" Tetsuya demanded, his hands clenching and his body shaking all over, "You did something, didn't you?"

"I only gifted you with a small piece of my soul," the king said quietly, "But, I said you can go. Go home, Tetsuya. I can wait for you to die later to reclaim you."

"You are going to use me against them, aren't you?" the noble accused him, tears coming to his eyes, "You...?"

"You don't wish to go?" Ywach asked softly, "Then...by all means remain here, and I will come back to enjoy more time with you. Stay as long as you want. Leave whenever you wish. In the end, it will not matter. You and the ones you protect will be mine, Tetsuya. That was decided the moment you became my prisoner."

The king turned and walked out of the room, leaving Tetsuya nearly naked and unbound, staring at the opened door. His mind awash in torment enough to bring him to madness, Tetsuya collapsed on the bed holding himself tightly and screaming in torment.


	6. Angel in Black

**Chapter 6: Angel in Black**

Almost immediately upon re-entering the Seireitei from above, Byakuya sensed the foul presence of the quincy who had nearly slain him, and in addition, he sensed that said quincy invader was now threatening his sister. He headed in their direction, keeping his reiatsu carefully concealed and avoiding the areas where he sensed other shinigamis were engaging the enemy.

_I will not let that monster harm her._

He remembered all too well the damage As Nodt had done to him in their first confrontation.

_Things are different now. We no longer have the threat of having our bankai stolen, so we are freed to fight at our fullest capacity. I think none of us with a bankai will escape having to use them._

His dark eyes glinted proudly.

_Rukia included._

_Yes, _he thought as he hurried in her direction, feeling the strong, vibrant pulses of her blossoming power, _Rukia has grown so very strong, and he bankai is…_

He sucked in a disturbed breath as he felt As Nodt's power throb and swell dangerously. Then, he felt the harsh stab of Rukia's increasing fear.

_No, I won't let it happen._

He dropped down, onto the ground, honing in on the huge sphere that had formed in front of him.

"Scatter."

He flash stepped to the odd structure and drew his sword, then he slashed through it, using a swirl of petals to destroy all of the strange, staring eyeballs.

"Why, Byakuya," As Nodt greeted him, his black eyes glinting, "I was waiting for you. You look thin. Ah, but I did rip out your insides when last we met. It must have been so hard, not being able to eat."

Byakuya ignored the quincy's continued taunts, waiting as their enemy's anger grew until he unleashed his vollstandig. Before their eyes, As Nodt's body swelled and grew until it towered over them. The quincy stalked them, and Byakuya spoke briefly to his sister to calm her.

"I am coming for you, Byakuya," As Nodt laughed, his voice shaking the ground under their feet. You couldn't stop me before, and I will just kill you again, as many times as I need to so that your soul and hers go to our leader. This is the end."

"Ah, it is the end, you say," Byakuya said calmly, giving Rukia a little nod, "Sorry, but I will not be the one to defeat you."

As Nodt looked from Byakuya to Rukia and his anger swiftly billowed into rage.

"Are you kidding me?"

"Bankai," Rukia said, looking into As Nodt's depthless black orbs, "Hakka no Togame."

Byakuya was left breathless as the white haze of his sister's bankai enveloped the enraged quincy, and instantly, he began to freeze and die. But before the quincy expired, he forced out a last few words.

"It…doesn't matter. H-his majesty h-has sown the s-seeds of your _destruction_!"

Byakuya gazed warily at the quincy, his body shivering softly in the cold that filled the area, as nearby, Rukia continued her slow recovery from the use of her bankai. He stepped closer to the vanquished enemy, first looking up to where the huge, monstrous head was evaporating into steam, while the hanging remains of his original body dripped slowly as the ice melted. The clan leader frowned as a twinkle of silver caught his eye and he reached up to where something dangled from around the remains of the quincy's icy throat. Byakuya's fingertips touched the chill metal, then his heart quickened and began to pound furiously. He yanked the necklace and pendant free from the dead quincy, holding it in his shaking hand and staring at it in dismay.

"N-nii-sama?" Rukia whispered dizzily, "Wh-what is that?"

Byakuya closed his eyes and brought the pendant to his breast, his heart breaking for his missing cousin.

"Only a reminder of what is at stake," he said softly, his voice shaking slightly, "Just focus on melting slowly, Rukia. We must continue our mission. Tetsuya's fate is in other hands right now...and I have been assured that those hands are capable."

Rukia gazed quietly at Tetsuya's pendant, tears coming to her eyes.

"Yes, Nii-sama."

Byakuya and Rukia heard a soft footstep on the nearby debris and turned, their hands on their weapons and their eyes fierce.

"Hang on guys! Don't kill me. It's just me," Renji said quickly.

"Abarai!" Byakuya sighed in a relieved tone, moving forward to embrace the redhead, "I did not know if we would be able to find you in all of this."

"Yeah, the reiatsu that guy, Ywach, released into the area really mucked things up. It's always hard for me to sense shit anyway, but this complicates things even more! I almost didn't sense this guy until he was right on top of me."

Byakuya and Rukia startled as they realized suddenly that Renji was not alone, but that the black and red-clad king's samurai stood just behind him.

"Katsuro," Byakuya said, withdrawing Tetsuya's pendant from his pocket, "you have not found my cousin yet?"

"No, not yet," Katsuro admitted, shaking his head, "I was distracted briefly sending an enemy or two off on a wild goose chase. One of them was observing Renji quite closely. I wanted to warn all of you, they are closer then you think and still very dangerous. But, I have found my way past them and into Silbern, where the enemy king is housed."

"If you can get in, then you must show us!" Byakuya said quickly, "You know that our objective is to infiltrate the enemy's castle and defeat him here, if possible."

"Yes, that is your duty, if possible. Very well, I will show you in. But once we are inside, I must focus on finding Tetsuya and you must focus on locating the king and his upper officers."

"But Tetsuya is my cousin, my responsibility," Byakuya objected, "He was only taken because he came to help me. I must..."

The four paused as several huge explosions rose up in the distance and they all felt the sharp swell and deep decline of a familiar shinigami's reiatsu.

"Holy hell! That's...!" Renji began.

"Zaraki Kenpachi," Byakuya breathed, a haunted look entering his eyes.

"The soul king told us who the enemy would be targeting for acquisition," Rukia whispered, staring in the direction of the disturbance.

"Acquisition or destruction," Katsuro corrected her, "And his majesty made it clear that those targets must be protected. It seems that the king will have to wait. Your duty is clear. You must go to Zaraki Kenpachi's aid!"

"And you will...?" Byakuya queried.

"I will continue my missions," Katsuro said simply, "I will seek what information I can finesse about the quincy king's plans and I will rescue Kuchiki Tetsuya and deliver him to the royal palace alive."

"We'll come back as soon as we take care of Zaraki taichou!" Renji promised.

Byakuya reached out and caught Katsuro's arm as he turned and started to leave.

"Wait," he said softly, slipping the pendant into the samurai's rough hand, "This may help you find him. I found it on the remains of the quincy Rukia killed, the one that defeated me and took Tetsuya. His reiatsu is on it and you will notice that it has begun to be corrupted by the enemy. You must hurry. This suggests he is being kept alive, but if this quincy was the one responsible for him, he will change hands and the wheels of his fate may turn badly."

"I understand," Katsuro said, taking the pendant and fastening the chain around his neck, "I promise you, Byakuya, I will find him. I will bring him back safely."

Byakuya watched as he disappeared, his eyes sad as he remembered the altered feel of Tetsuya's reiatsu.

"Be strong, watashi no itoko. Help is coming."

XXXXXXXXXX

Tetsuya heard approaching footsteps in the long hallway outside the quincy king's bedroom, but he ignored them and continued to look silently out the window, from where he rested in the window seat, leaned against the wall and gazing through glazed, devastated eyes at the tumbled buildings and ice that laid scattered about everywhere. He felt the soft swell of his returned power that the quincy king had restored, and sensed his stallion's soul within his, strengthening and preparing to emerge, but could only register the emptiness of what was happening, in light of what the king had done.

_I don't remember what he said. I was nearly unconscious when he whispered words in another language and said something horrible. But I cannot remember what he said he was doing. He knows I don't remember, so I think it was purposeful. As long as I do not know what was done, I am frozen in place, as surely as when I was in bondage. That the shackles are unseen is meaningless, since using my power and leaving like he was goading me to do would only spring whatever trap he has for me. And having felt his wickedness touch me, I do not doubt he would want me to somehow, with my own actions, destroy what I want to protect. I won't let that happen. So, I won't leave here and I won't die. As long as I live and as long as I remain here, Ywach cannot carry out his threat to destroy the Kuchiki family. But there is a great weight in being the one on whose shoulders their fate rests. At any moment, Ywach could choose to abandon toying with me and destroy all of us!_

_My hands are tied for now._

"Ah, Kuchiki Tetsuya," the king said in a welcoming tone, "I had rather hoped that you would stay."

"You mean that you knew I would have no choice," Tetsuya acknowledged softly

"You are not bound. And I did tell you that it was safe for you to leave. Would you like me to open a shadow doorway into the place where Soul Society is imprisoned?"

"No."

"I am flattered by your insistence in staying. But I am weary just now. I must sleep for a while. Come. Lie down with me."

_There is nothing to gain and everything to lose by resisting. I have no choice but to obey him for now._

Tetsuya approached the king and waited quietly as Ywach removed their clothes and they laid down in bed together. Neither noticed as a shadowy figure slipped into the room and concealed himself a short distance from the bed.

"Ishida Uryu told me that you were held in a noble's prison and used by the guards."

"Yes."

"You were instructed how to please them?"

"Yes."

"Then, I would like to see how well they trained you."

Tetsuya's eyes closed for a moment and his lips stiffened, but he thought about the family members trapped in the shadows and nodded briefly to show his acquiescence. Ywach smiled and pulled him into a long, penetrating kiss, then watched closely as Tetsuya's head bowed and began the promised attentions.

Katsuro watched from nearby, his heart burning with rage, not just at the way the king's chosen was being used, but at the words aimed at further breaking the young man's already shattered heart.

"I am aware that the soul king has had his eye on you, Kuchiki Tetsuya. And now I see why. You know well how to please your master."

A small, smile touched the samurai's lips as Tetsuya paused in his efforts and glowered at the quincy king.

"You are not, and will never be my master," Tetsuya said with surprising calm, "You are only my captor, and I am resolved to see you cast down and returned to the helpless state that you had before you began stealing souls to strengthen yourself! Do not delude yourself into thinking for a moment that I will devote myself to you!"

Tetsuya sucked in a dismayed breath as Ywach's hand closed around one slender wrist and dragged him back to the quincy king's stern face.

"You belong to _me_ now," Ywach warned him in a scathing tone, "And your king has done _nothing_ to save you."

"You send your own into death all of the time," Tetsuya answered coldly, "and you do so without hesitation. How can you fault Reio for just 'not rescuing me?' I am sure that my presence here, whether I live or die will serve him. I am not sorry for doing that!"

"Well, sorry or not, you will serve me as well," Ywach growled, pushing Tetsuya downward, then curling his fingers into the young man's hair and pulling to stop him, "And while you do, remember that if you anger me, then we will stop the games that moment and put an end to your life and all of those you are protecting!"

"I am aware," Tetsuya said solemnly, waiting until the quincy king's fingers released his hair, then continuing to work his way downward.

The noble was still on his hands and knees, beneath Ywach's parted thighs, when a tap sounded on the door and Haschwald entered, with Uryu at his side. the two stopped, blushing at the sight of the naked king and the lovely naked captive between his thighs, pleasuring him.

"S-sorry, your majesty," Haschwald said, blushing, "We will..."

"Go ahead," Ywach said, matter-of-factly, "Give your report."

He glanced down at Tetsuya, who had paused upon the arrival of the others and nodded for him to continue his efforts. Sickness swelling inside, Tetsuya complied.

Nearby, Katsuro remained hidden and listened carefully.

"Your majesty, we have sensed a sharp decline in Zaraki Kenpachi's reiatsu and several shinigamis have been sensed moving in his direction. It seems you were correct in assuming that if Zaraki was attacked, the others would go to him."

"Yes," Ywach answered approvingly, "Did you order the rest of the Sternritters to close in on that location?"

"Yes. They should reach the area shortly."

"Good," the king panted, his breath shortening as he neared completion, "That should bring Kurosaki Ichigo back here and open the way for us. Wait for me in the throne room. I will join you there soon."

"As you wish," Haschwald said quietly.

Tetsuya's eye found Uryu's for a moment and read the sadness there. He continued to pleasure Ywach as the other two men left.

"Tetsuya!" the quincy king moaned, dragging the captive noble back to his mouth and invading the younger man's forcefully.

With no further intelligible words, he parted Tetsuya's shaking thighs and claimed him in a sharp, brutal thrust, looking into the noble's oddly distant blue eyes as he took his pleasure. Tetsuya closed his eyes again and focused deeply on memories of the family that waited within the shadows, depending on him to keep them safe and he gave no resistance as the king's hand began to pleasure him and Ywach's voice sounded chillingly in his ear.

"I will tell you something that no one knows, n-not that you will remember it later," the king panted, not slowing in his motions as he spoke, "Although I have named Ishida Uryu as my successor, he will not live to take that place. I have also sensed that you are a descendant of the breeder males spoken of in the noble histories."

Tetsuya gasped, trying to pull away, but helpless to escape as Ywach approached climax.

"I have decided how I will kill you, Tetsuya. I am going to implant the true heir in you."

"N-no!" Tetsuya gasped, struggling.

Panic filled his slender body as the king's reiatsu curled around him and began to seep into his body.

"S-stop!"

"You have had your breeder ability sealed by the clan, as this was the only way they would agree to allow you to live and be accepted among them, but I will use this breeder ability now."

"Stop it! DON'T!" Tetsuya cried.

Nearby, Katsuro's hand tightened on his weapon, but he remained frozen as the king's words returned to him forcefully.

_Remember that the quincy king must not find out you are there. He already knows about you, my samurai, and I have seen that your mission will fail if you face him directly. Listen to his plans, rescue Kuchiki Tetsuya and return to me with the two of you alive._

"Damn it!" he swore, quivering with rage as the sounds of Tetsuya's resistance became more violent and his voice rose into a howl.

"DON'T DO THIS!"

The words ended in an agonized scream as the quincy king climaxed, sending his scathing release into the captive shinigami's shuddering body. The quincy king held him tightly in place until the last pulses of release had faded and Tetsuya's laid, white-faced and unmoving beneath him.

"Thank you," he breathed into the noble's ear, "You are well-skilled...so much so that I am beginning to feel attached to you. So if you continue to obey me, you will not have to die. The heir grows inside you now. And as it grows, it will feed on your reiatsu and your strength. When it has matured, it can be removed before it can kill you. If you remain with me, I will remove the child and save you. I will keep you as my concubine, Tetsuya. You will bear all of my heirs and live a comfortable life in the royal palace. No one will be allowed to mistreat you ever again. But...if you defy me or try to leave me now, I will let you be overcome before removing the heir. And when you are dead, I will take your family into custody and have them executed, one-by-one in front of me."

He smiled as a tear leaked out of the corner of one of Tetsuya's closed eyes. Capturing it on a fingertip, he brushed it against his lips, then kissed his captive more gently.

"Listen carefully," he told the noble, "I want to share something with you. As I rest, you should be able to feel it, Tetsuya, the return of the souls that have died today. Can you feel them?"

Tetsuya said nothing, only breathing slowly as he felt the touch of those other doomed souls.

"You can also feel the presence of souls I have already consumed," Ywach added, "You felt the presence of As Nodt before, when I entered the room, did you not?"

Tetsuya remained silent, but stiffened, making the quincy king smile.

"Yes, As Nodt has rejoined Seiji within me. They serve to power me, as do all who die and come into me. But you can feel them, can't you?"

Fresh tears leaked onto Tetsuya's face as he felt the brushings of those lost lives against his heart.

_I cannot bear the thought of such an ending for our clan...swallowed up by the enemy and used to harm our own king. What am I to do?_

"There is nothing you can do," Ywach said, as though reading his thoughts, "You and all of your family will serve me this way, but...you, with your obedience, can win them a longer, more enjoyable time to live, Tetsuya. Or you can end it all now. The choice is yours."

"Bastard!" Katsuro breathed, his stomach clenching as tightly as the hand that held his weapon.

Amidst the torment, Tetsuya's mind flickered with a sudden thought, and he relaxed against Ywach, feeling each aching breath that came into and left his beleaguered body. Minutes passed and new beads of sweat broke out on his skin, but finally, his lips betrayed the smallest hint of a smile.

_Byakuya-sama's soul is not here, within him._

_Byakuya-sama is alive._

"Ah, you have realized?" asked Ywach, touching his lips lightly to Tetsuya's again and smiling.

"B-but why?"

"You were despairing too much," the quincy king informed him, "Had you become completely despondent, you might have died before my child was born. And besides, you are charming company, Tetsuya. You will have a place close to me in my new regime. But sleep now. You require rest to supply strength to our baby. Can you feel your body feeding his soul?"

Tetsuya shivered under Ywach's hands at just the thought.

"Sleep," Ywach said again, touching a palm to the captive noble's forehead.

Tetsuya's breathing slowed and he fell still as the quincy king's fingers stroked his hair and Ywach nuzzled his pale cheek and offered him a kiss of farewell.

"I have to leave you for now," he said, fully aware that Tetsuya could no longer hear him, "But I will leave you in safety here. When the king falls and I take my throne from him, you will awaken and come to me, Tetsuya. And I promise you, having given me such a gift as you will, you will never be hurt again. But, goodbye for now."

He exited the bed and dressed, his eyes constantly watching as Tetsuya slept. When dressed, Ywach returned to the bed and dressed Tetsuya's limp body in a silken black yukata, then he straightened and placed a powerful barrier around the unconscious shinigami's resting body.

"Sleep well," Ywach said in parting as he turned away, "When your eyes open again, it will be over. The shadows will be just a faint memory."

Katsuro suppressed a stinging urge to attack as the quincy king passed within a few feet of him, but held himself back until Ywach was gone and the door closed. Then, he left his place of concealment and hastened to Tetsuya's side. His hand extended and he sensed the barrier.

_Ywach and the others have gone, and the sternritters are all engaging the last defenders of the Gotei 13. I need to get Tetsuya somewhere safe, where I can deal with what that bastard did to him._

He walked back to the chamber doors, locking and bracing them against entry by any remaining soldats, then he returned to Tetsuya's side and sensed the barrier again. Raising his power, he took aim on the barrier, then he loosed his reiatsu, shattering the cage and opening the way to his intended target.

"I'm sorry," he said penitently, "I wish that I could have intervened, but I was warned against it, so I had to wait until he left you. But we'll escape now, Tetsuya."

He lifted the noble's unresponsive body into his arms, listening as the sound of pounding feet echoed in the hallway outside. Swiftly, he opened a doorway, leading into the precipice world.

"We can't go to the royal realm until the fighting is done," Katsuro sighed, "And the fighting will be fierce here now. Our only choice is to go to Karakura Town and wait there. I will heal you when we are safe. You will be all right, Tetsuya, I promise."

He held Tetsuya against him and entered the precipice world, closing the doorway, just as the soldats broke through the chamber door.

_It is so quiet here. It's hard to believe what is going on back there. I would be there fighting, _he thought, glancing down at Tetsuya, _but I must trust in the soul king's vision. Tetsuya and I must not be involved in the fighting, but must return to him after._

Still, as he touched down in the world of the living and climbed the ladder into Urahara's shop, his heart ached with regret.

"Stop right there, mister!" shouted a youthful, male voice, making Katsuro pause and stare at the boy and girl who appeared in front of him, "What are you doing here?"

"Is that Tetsuya-san?" asked the girl, recognizing Katsuro's unconscious charge.

"Yes, he has been injured," the samurai answered, "I can heal him, but I will need a bed to lay him in and medical supplies."

"Not so fast! Tell us who you are first," the boy demanded.

Katsuro smiled warmly at the two.

"I am Abarai Katsuro," the samurai answered, lifting his chin slightly to reveal some of the tattoos on his chest, "I am Abarai Renji's father. You know Renji, ne?"

"Yeah," Jinta said, scowling, "But he never mentioned a father. He was from Inuzuri and had no parents."

"He had parents," Katsuro corrected the youth, "He was born by me out of Shihoin Tama."

"Shihoin Tama!" Ururu exclaimed, "but he..."

"He never told me that our...meeting resulted in a child," the samurai went on, "By the time I did find out, the quincies were preparing to invade and I could not come back safely to speak to him. We met when Renji, Kuchiki Rukia, Kuchiki Byakuya and Kurosaki Ichigo were brought to the royal realm."

"And why should we believe what you say?" Jinta persisted, "How do we know you're not lying?"

Katsuro touched one of the tattoos on his shoulder and his body glowed briefly with celestial light, instantly stopping the boy's objections.

"All right, then, we'll trust you," he said grudgingly.

"Bring Tetsuya-san this way," Ururu directed the samurai.

"Thank you," Katsuro sighed wearily, turning to follow the two down the hallway.

_This is unbearable, waiting while our fate is decided, but at least while things rage in that place, we will not be alone in our torment, ne Tetsuya?_

_We will have each other._


End file.
